Cessna 172N N5816E

Summary

On 28 February 1988 at about 16:00 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N5816E, operated by DON Nelson, was involved in an accident near Oxford, Iowa, United States. 4 people were on board and 4 died. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.

Date

28 February 1988 at 16:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Oxford, Iowa, United States

Nearest airport

Green Castle (IA24)

Coordinates

41.7201, -91.7791

Aircraft

Cessna 172N

Registration

N5816E

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

DON Nelson

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Unknown → Dodgeville

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MKC88FA058

4 people died.

The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.

Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.

Read the full NTSB narrative

WITNESSES STATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT APPEARED TO BE IN TROUBLE IMMEDIATLEY AFTER TAKEOFF, AS THE WINGS WERE RAPIDLY ROCKING WHILE IT WAS STRUGGLING TO STAY AIRBORNE. THE AIRCRAFT TURNED SHARPLY LEFT, WHERE IT THEN BARELY CLEARED A ROW OF TREES. THE AIRPLANE CONTINUED, WITH ITS WINGS STILL ROCKING, WHEN IT SUDDENLY PITCHED UP AS IT APCHD SOME POWER LINES. THE AIRCRAFT WAS OBSERVED CLEARING THE POWER LINES, HANGING IN MID-AIR, THEN PLUMMETING NOSE FIRST TO THE GROUND. THERE WAS NO IN-FLIGHT NOR POST-CRASH FIRE. ON-SCENE DOCUMENTATION INDICATED THAT THE PILOT HAD USED 20 DEGREES OF FLAPS FOR TAKEOFF. A COMPLETE ENGINE TEARDOWN INSPECTION REVEALED NO PREEXISTING DISCREPANCIES.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.