Cessna 172 RG accident near Green Bay, Wisconsin, January 14, 1983
On January 14, 1983 at about 3:39 pm local time, a Cessna 172 RG, registered N9916B, was substantially damaged in an accident near Green Bay, Wisconsin (Austin Straubel airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 14, 1983 · about 3:39 pm local time
- Place
- Green Bay, Wisconsin · Austin Straubel · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 RG · all 172 RGs on the register
- Registration
- N9916B · no longer on the register · serial 172RG1079
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH THE GROUND DURING AN ILS APPROACH. THE WEATHER WAS IMC AT THE TIME AND AN IFR FLT PLAN WAS FILED.THE PILOT WAS INSTRUMENT RATED AND HAD RECEIVED A WEATHER BRIEFING WHICH FORECAST ICING AND FREEZING DRIZZLE. THE PILOT TOLD THE WEATHER BRIEFER HE DID NOT THINK IT SOUNDED TOO BAD. THE FSS BRIEFER STATED ITS NOT THAT GREAT. THE PILOT ELECTED TO GO AND AFTER CLIMBING TO 8000 FT BEGAN TO GET STRUCTURAL ICING. LOWER ALT WAS TRIED WITHOUT SUCCESS IN AVOIDING ICING. AT THE SUGGESTION OF GREEN BAY ATCT THE PILOT ACCEPTED VECTORS TO AN ILS APPROACH TO AUSTIN STRAUBEL ARPT 50 MINUTES AFTER INITIAL DEPARTURE. THE PLT COULD NOT SEE THE RWY AT DECISION HEIGHT DUE TO WINDSHIELD ICE. VECTORSWERE GIVEN FOR ANOTHER APPROACH. THE PLT SAID HE HOPED TO SEE OUT OF THE SIDE WINDOW. AT DECISION HEIGHT HE SAW THE RWY TO THE LEFT OUT OF SIDE WINDOW. HE SAID HE TURNED LEFT AND THE RIGHT WING DROPPED AND HE CAME DOWN. THE ACFT CAME TO REST 500 FT SHORT OF THE RWY AND 100 TO 150 FT RIGHT OF CENTERLINE.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 369 hours in all; 39 in this make and model; 41 in the last 90 days; 226 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 174 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 29, 1982; 47 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-F1A6 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MKE Milwaukee WI
- Destination: IMT Iron Mountain MI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 6R, 7,699 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 17 knots
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:29 pm from GRB
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.