Cessna 177RG accident near Watertown, South Dakota, April 27, 2000
On April 27, 2000 at about 2:55 am local time, a Cessna 177RG, registered N1978Q, was destroyed in an accident near Watertown, South Dakota (Watertown Municipal airport). It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot failed to maintain aircraft control due to spatial disorientation. Factors relating to the accident were the dark night, clouds, and rain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 27, 2000 · about 2:55 am local time
- Place
- Watertown, South Dakota · Watertown Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 177RG · all 177RGs on the register
- Registration
- N1978Q · no longer on the register · serial 177RG0378
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane impacted the water in about a 60 degree nose down attitude. The flight occurred during marginal VFR weather at night. The pilot had made an unscheduled landing and obtained a weather brief and filed an IFR flight plan. VFR flight was not recommended. About 30 minutes prior to the accident, ATC instructed the pilot to descend at pilot's discretion to 4,000 feet and report the airport in sight for a visual approach. The pilot acknowledged the instructions and descended to 4,000 feet. The pilot made no further transmissions. Radar contact was lost about 11 nautical miles south of the airport at 3,800 feet msl. The pilot had a total of about 12 hours of actual instrument time and a total of about 50 hours of night time. At 2153, the weather was: Winds 200 at 8 knots, 10 miles visibility, light rain showers, few clouds at 1,000 feet, broken at 1,800 feet, overcast at 6,000 feet, temperature 52 degrees F, dew point 50 degrees F, altimeter 29.95. The wreckage path covered a distance of approximately 310 feet, oriented to the north, and in two to three feet of water. The inspection of the airplane revealed no pre-existing anomalies.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 566 hours in all; 39 in this make and model; 164 in the last 90 days; 51 in the last 30 days; 453 as pilot in command; 127 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,513 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 1, 1999; 84 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A1B6D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FSD Sioux Falls SD at 2:19 am
- Destination: ATY
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 35, 6,895 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 200° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,800 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 am from ATY, 8 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.