Aviation Crash Map

Cessna 172N N4796E

23 August 2002 · Mesa, Arizona, United States · No injuries

Summary

On 23 August 2002 at about 17:20 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N4796E was involved in an accident near Mesa, Arizona, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

The record

Date
at 17:20
Classification
Accident
Location
Mesa, Arizona, United States
Nearest airport
Falcon Field (FFZ)
Coordinates
33.4500, -111.7167
Aircraft
Cessna 172N
Registration
N4796E
Category
Airplane
Engines
1
Operator
Not recorded
Operating rule
Part 91: General Aviation
Purpose of flight
Instructional
Phase of flight
Not recorded
Route
Mesa → Unknown
Aircraft damage
Destroyed
Weather
VMC
Light
Day
NTSB number
LAX02FA259

People

Nobody was injured.

On board Died Serious Minor Uninjured
2 0 0 0 2

Probable cause

An electrical fire of unknown origin centered near the circuit breaker/throttle area of the instrument panel.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The student pilot observed smoke and flames in the circuit breaker/throttle area of the instrument panel during the takeoff initial climb about 100 feet above the ground. He called out the fire to the certified flight instructor (CFI), who then took over the flight controls and landed on the remaining runway. The airplane came to a stop in an open area beyond the departure end of the runway. Prior to exiting the airplane the CFI turned off the master switch, avionics master, magnetos, fuel selector, and he pulled the mixture to idle cutoff. After the occupants exited the airplane it became engulfed in flames. Both the CFI and the student reported that the landing light circuit breaker had been tripped. The CFI had attempted to reset the circuit breaker, but it would not reset. Due to the extensive fire damage to the instrument panel and circuit breakers, the landing light circuit breaker was not identified and a determination could not be made as to the ignition area of the fire.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.

Other Cessna 172 accidents

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
12 Jun 2002 Cessna 172F
N7873U
Salt Lake City, Utah, United States - No injuries -
20 Sep 2002 Cessna 172P
N612CB
Lutz, Florida, United States Troy Mason Heidel No injuries -
21 Sep 2002 Cessna 172RG
N6303V
Del Mar, California, United States - No injuries -
16 Mar 2002 Cessna 172Q
N66076
Fruitland, Utah, United States Wings of Denver Serious injuries -
13 Jun 2002 Cessna 172K
N84840
Clarkston, Washington, United States Huck, Barry P. No injuries -
14 Aug 2002 Cessna 172G
N56BC
Sangerville, Maine, United States - Minor injuries -

All 12,209 records for this type

Other accidents in this area

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
10 Jul 2002 Beechcraft 95-B55
N812D
Mesa, Arizona, United States Charles A. Moran No injuries -
13 Jul 2002 Steen SE-1
N2018S
Tucson, Arizona, United States - Fatal 1
8 Nov 2002 Cessna 208B
N514DB
Parks, Arizona, United States - Fatal 4
13 Jul 2002 McConnell LANCAIR 320
N320DM
Sedona, Arizona, United States - No injuries -
15 Mar 2002 Pilatus UV-20A
23253
Marana, Arizona, United States - Fatal 1
16 Mar 2002 Avian MAGNUM IX
N2037U
Sedona, Arizona, United States - Serious injuries -

All 170,864 records in United States