Cessna 172H accident near Kalkaska, Michigan, November 15, 2000
On November 15, 2000 at about 8:00 pm local time, a Cessna 172H, registered N1706F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Kalkaska, Michigan (Kalkaska Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control on the ground. Factors relating to this accident were the student pilot's improper abort procedures, the sign, and the ditch.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 15, 2000 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Kalkaska, Michigan · Kalkaska Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172H · all 172Hs on the register
- Registration
- N1706F · no longer on the register · serial 172-55101
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot said that right after liftoff he noticed his airspeed was "falling." He said that he looked at his tachometer and saw that it "was running at 2,500 rpm's." The student pilot leveled off but saw his airspeed continue to drop. He also noted that his tachometer read 2,100 rpm's. The student pilot put the airplane back down on the runway. The airplane went off the left side of the runway, struck a runway light, continued through a field, struck a road sign, and continued through another field until reaching a ditch, on which the airplane nosed over. The student pilot said that when the airplane hit the sign, he "lost rudder control and pulled power." An examination of the airplane revealed no 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: student
- Flight time: 74 hours in all; 74 in this make and model; 4 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,328 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 27, 2000; 4 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Y89 at 8:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 10, 3,800 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 2,600 ft
- Temperature: 99°F (37°C), dew point 82°F (28°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:24 pm from TVC, 16 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 N1706F 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.