Cessna 120 accident near Brookfield, Wisconsin, September 6, 2002
On September 6, 2002 at about 4:15 pm local time, a Cessna 120, registered N2601N, was involved in an accident near Brookfield, Wisconsin. 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 inadequate visual outlook by the pilot during taxi.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 6, 2002 · about 4:15 pm local time
- Place
- Brookfield, Wisconsin · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 120 · all 120s on the register
- Registration
- N2601N · registry record · serial 12861
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was being taxied for takeoff when the propeller struck a grounds keeper. The pilot stated that he was taxiing to the west and was "S" turning and saw no obstacles. He said that he heard a noise and saw a, "weedwhacker rise upward at right corner of windshield." He stated that he shut the aircraft down and found the grounds keeper injured and lying on the ground. The grounds keeper had been struck by the airplane propeller.
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: 1,200 hours in all; 758 in this make and model; 16 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 1,145 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-85-12 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 02C Brookfield WI
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.