Cessna 172K N78239
15 September 1991 · Greeneville, Tennessee, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 15 September 1991 at about 00:30 local time, a Cessna 172K registered N78239, operated by Broyles, William T, was involved in an accident near Greeneville, Tennessee, United States. 6 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 00:30
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Greeneville, Tennessee, United States
- Coordinates
- 36.0702, -82.8603
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172K
- Registration
- N78239
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Broyles, William T
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Night/Dark
- NTSB number
- ATL91LA175
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
Probable cause
THE INADEQUATE VISUAL LOOKOUT BY THE PILOT OF N78239, AND HIS FAILURE TO ACCURATELY JUDGE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE TWO AIRCRAFT. FACTORS IN THE ACCIDENT WERE THE DARK NIGHT CONDITIONS AND THE RESULTING VISUAL PERCEPTION OF AIRCRAFT LIGHTING IN DARK CONDITIONS.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
BOTH PILOTS HAD PLANNED LOCAL SIGHTSEEING NIGHT FLIGHTS. BOTH AIRCRAFT WERE ON AN EASTERLY HEADING, WITH N78239 (A C172K) IN FRONT OF N73L (A C172D). THE AIRCRAFT WERE IN RADIO CONTACT WITH EACH OTHER AND ATC WAS NOT INVOLVED. N78239 INITIATED A 360-DEGREE TURN, AND VISUALLY ACQUIRED THE LIGHTS OF N73L AFTER RESUMING AN EASTERLY HEADING. THE PILOT OF N78239 STATED THAT 'SUDDENLY WE HIT'! ALTHOUGH AT THE TIME HE THOUGHT THE SPACING BETWEEN AIRCRAFT WAS ABOUT 2 MILES. N78239 LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT DESPITE FLIGHT CONTROL PROBLEMS. N73L LOST DIRECTIONAL CONTROL UPON LANDING AND COLLIDED WITH A PARKED AIRPLANE. INSPECTION OF BOTH AIRCRAFT REVEALED THAT N78239 STRUCK N73L FROM THE REAR, THE RIGHT WING LEADING EDGE OF N78239 CONTACTING THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR OF N73L. THE IMPACT BROKE THE WING SPAR OF N78239 AND SEPARATED THE LEFT MAIN GEAR FROM N73L.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Aircraft involved
| Aircraft | Registration | Operator | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cessna 172K 172K | N78239 | Broyles, William T | Substantial |
| Cessna 172D 172D | N73L | Gregory, James K. | Substantial |
Other Cessna 172 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 Apr 1991 | Cessna 172P | College Park, Maryland, United States | Civil Air Patrol, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 25 Apr 1991 | Cessna 172 | Detroit, Michigan, United States | Eximous Flying Club, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 24 Jul 1991 | Cessna 172N | Napa, California, United States | Bridgeford Flying SVC. | No injuries | - |
| 9 Apr 1991 | Cessna 172H | Morehead, Kentucky, United States | Roger Wend | Minor injuries | - |
| 5 Apr 1991 | Cessna 172A | Hood River, Oregon, United States | Paul J. Welp | No injuries | - |
| 31 Mar 1991 | Cessna 172M | Ogden, Utah, United States | Alta Aircraft | No injuries | - |
All 12,209 records for this type
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 Nov 1991 | British 3101 | Memphis, Tennessee, United States | Northwest Airlink | Serious injuries | - |
| 13 Nov 1991 | Georga L Atwood KITFOX III | Trezevant, Tennessee, United States | Atwood, George L. | No injuries | - |
| 19 Jan 1991 | Beechcraft K35 | Lafayette, Tennessee, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 14 Feb 1991 | Cessna 172 | Crossville, Tennessee, United States | Hagen, Gary W. | Fatal | 1 |
| 30 Mar 1991 | Piper PA-24-250 | Franklin, Tennessee, United States | Hannasch, Thomas P. | Fatal | 1 |
| 20 Apr 1991 | Cessna 172N | Dunlap, Tennessee, United States | Imperial Fabricating Company | Fatal | 2 |