Cessna 172M accident near Eveleth, Minnesota, December 21, 2012
On December 21, 2012 at about 3:30 pm local time, a Cessna 172M, registered N9660H, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Eveleth, Minnesota (Eveleth-Virginia Muncipal 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot’s improper landing flare, which resulted in a hard nosewheel landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 21, 2012 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Eveleth, Minnesota · Eveleth-Virginia Muncipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172M · all 172Ms on the register
- Registration
- N9660H · registry record · serial 17266297
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot planned to practice a takeoff and landing before departing on a short solo flight. The student pilot reported that the approach was normal, but during the landing, the airplane’s nosewheel touched the runway first. The airplane bounced a couple times before the student pilot brought the airplane to a stop. Postflight examination of the airplane revealed that the nosewheel landing gear was compressed, the propeller bent, and the firewall had sustained substantial damage.
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
What happened, in order
- Abnormal runway contact during landing
- Hard landing during landing defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Experience/knowledge › Experience/qualifications › Total experience w/ equipment › Student pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Student pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Landing flare › Not attained/maintained
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 21 hours in all; 21 in this make and model; 1 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,892 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 6, 2012
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 SERIES (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Taconite Aviation INC
The flight
- Departed from: KEVM Eveleth MN
- Destination: KEVM Eveleth MN
- Flight plan: not recorded
- Runway 32, 2,505 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 3°F (-16°C), dew point -2°F (-19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.20 inHg
- Observation at 3:30 pm from KEVM
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CEN13CA112.