Cessna 172S incident near St. Cloud, Minnesota, December 12, 2000
On December 12, 2000 at about 8:00 pm local time, a Cessna 172S, registered N582SP, suffered minor damage in an incident near St. Cloud, Minnesota (St. Cloud Regional airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the fatigue failure of the propeller blade during the initial takeoff climb. The failure was a result of a material defect, which occurred during the manufacturing process and the manufacturers failure to detect the defect.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 12, 2000 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- St. Cloud, Minnesota · St. Cloud Regional · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172S · all 172Ss on the register
- Registration
- N582SP · registry record · serial 172S8509
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The outer 14 inches of one of the propeller blades separated during takeoff at an altitude of 400 to 500 feet above the runway. The certified flight instructor was able to land the airplane on a parallel taxiway without incident. The propeller had 236 hours total time at the time of the incident. Metallurgical examination revealed that about 60 percent of the fracture surface contained features typical of fatigue cracking which emanated from the flat face of the blade arm, near the trailing edge. The examination also revealed the microstructure was normal with the exception that the grain flow pattern followed the surface of the scallop region and not the surface of the blade. Chromium present in the scalloped region of the fracture and not on the fatigued surface indicated that the chromic anodized solution penetrated the indication during the anodizing process prior to the blade being painted.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 800 hours in all; 250 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 50 in the last 30 days; 680 as pilot in command; 150 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 13, 2000
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Modern Aero
The flight
- Departed from: STC at 8:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 31, 5,200 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 27°F (-3°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from STC
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.