Cessna 172 accident near Mobile, Alabama, November 30, 2000
On November 30, 2000 at about 8:30 pm local time, a Cessna 172, registered N8507B, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mobile, Alabama (Skywest Airpark airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper flare during landing that resulted in a hard landing and the subsequent overload failure of the nose gear assembly.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 30, 2000 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- Mobile, Alabama · Skywest Airpark
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N8507B · no longer on the register · serial 36207
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the pilot, during landing on the grass strip, the airplane bounced, power was added and shortly after, the nose gear collapsed. Examination of the nose gear attach points found the gear had separated in overload.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 121 hours in all; 30 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 38 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,656 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 11, 2000; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 4R4 Fairhope AL at 8:05 pm
- Destination: S26
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 2,467 ft by 110 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 41°F (5°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:56 pm from MOB, 7 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.