Cessna 172N accident near Olive Branch, Mississippi, July 6, 1998
On July 6, 1998 at about 12:55 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N739ZA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Olive Branch, Mississippi (Olive Branch airport). It was an instructional 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 student pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during takeoff.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 6, 1998 · about 12:55 pm local time
- Place
- Olive Branch, Mississippi · Olive Branch
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N739ZA · no longer on the register · serial 17270926
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the student pilot, on the eighth departure from runway 18, the plane began to drift to the left. He applied right rudder to correct but the airplane continued to drift to the left. According to the FAA, the student pilot was conducting his second supervised solo flight, when he departed the left side of runway 18 on takeoff, and substantially damaged the airplane after impacting a ditch and small trees.
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: student
- Flight time: 31 hours in all; 31 in this make and model; 17 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 1 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,397 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 1, 1998; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,600 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Douglas Aviation, INC
The flight
- Departed from: OLV MS at 12:25 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 18, 6,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:51 pm from MEN, 10 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.
Other NTSB records under N739ZA the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.