Cessna 172 accident near Chesterfield, Missouri, February 5, 2000
On February 5, 2000 at about 3:45 pm local time, a Cessna 172, registered N738EJ, was substantially damaged in an accident near Chesterfield, Missouri (Spirit Of St. Louis 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 failed to maintain directional control during the takeoff portion of a touch and go landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 5, 2000 · about 3:45 pm local time
- Place
- Chesterfield, Missouri · Spirit Of St. Louis · map
- 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
- N738EJ · no longer on the register · serial 17269917
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was substantially damaged when it veered off the left side of the runway when takeoff power was applied after a touch and go landing. The pilot reported that after the landing she prepared for takeoff. She recalled, '... an instantaneous thought of 'that (the plane) feels odd,' and then I was immediately and rapidly veering left.' She reported the airplane veered off the runway and into the grass. She aborted the takeoff. She reported the airplane crossed a taxiway before stopping in the grass.
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: 192 hours in all; 9 in this make and model; 1 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 79 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,651 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 17, 1999; 68 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SUS at 3:45 pm
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 26R, 3,800 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:54 pm from SUS
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 N738EJ 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.