Cessna 172N accident near Elkhart, Indiana, December 30, 2000
On December 30, 2000 at about 4:42 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N6326F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Elkhart, Indiana (Elkhart Municipal 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 loss of directional control by the student pilot and the inadequate remedial action and inadequate supervision by the certified flight instructor. Factors were the snow and ice covered runway and the snowbank.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 30, 2000 · about 4:42 pm local time
- Place
- Elkhart, Indiana · Elkhart Municipal Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N6326F · registry record · serial 17273191
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The aircraft was performing touch and goes when it slid into a snowbank on the side of the runway. The certified flight instructor (CFI) said, "Upon landing and rollout, the aircraft slide sideways on some ice, corrections were made, but no change." The aircraft subsequently struck the snowbank at the edge of the runway. The CFI reported no mechanical malfunction in his written report. The CFI reported that the dual student was at the controls at the time of the accident. A postaccident examination of the aircraft revealed no anomalies that could be associated with a preexisting condition.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 450 hours in all; 213 in this make and model; 55 in the last 90 days
- Last flight review: July 10, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Flight time: 12 hours in all
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,755 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 2, 2000; 67 hours since
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EKM Elkhart IN at 3:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 6,500 ft by 120 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 350° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 3,500 ft; scat at 1,700 ft
- Temperature: 21°F (-6°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.93 inHg
- Observation at 4:45 pm from EKM
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.