Cessna 172P accident near Buffalo City, Wisconsin, August 19, 2002
On August 19, 2002 at about 4:10 pm local time, a Cessna 172P, registered N381J, was substantially damaged in an accident near Buffalo City, Wisconsin. It was a business 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 malfunction of the seat positioning system for undetermined reasons, which resulted in the loss of directional control. A factor to the accident was the descending embankment.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 19, 2002 · about 4:10 pm local time
- Place
- Buffalo City, Wisconsin · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172P · all 172Ps on the register
- Registration
- N381J · registry record · serial 17274183
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported his seat slid rearward during a takeoff from a gravel road, resulting in a loss of directional control. The aircraft veered off the road and went down an embankment. The seat and its positioning system were examined. The unintentional rearward movement of the seat, as described by the pilot, could not be duplicated. The seat moved freely along the seat tracks, with the latch pins engaging the pinholes. The seat could be twisted (racked) resulting in the outboard latch pin engaging a pinhole and the failure of the inboard latch pin to engage a pinhole. If the seat was displaced in the forward direction, both latch pins engaged a pinhole.
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: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,230 hours in all; 3,407 in this make and model; 264 in the last 90 days; 95 in the last 30 days; 5,123 as pilot in command; 0 on instruments
- Last flight review: June 14, 2002
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,829 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 8, 2002
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D25 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Buffalo City WI at 4:10 pm
- Destination: ONA Winona MN
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 3:58 pm from ONA, 12 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.
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.