Cessna 172N accident near White Cloud, Michigan, April 5, 1985
On April 5, 1985 at about 8:00 am local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N23TC, was destroyed in an accident near White Cloud, Michigan. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were killed. 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
- April 5, 1985 · about 8:00 am local time
- Place
- White Cloud, Michigan · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N23TC · no longer on the register · serial 17269241
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT ABOUT 0250 EST, CONTROL TOWER PSNL AT THE GRAND RAPIDS ARPT HEARD A 'MAYDAY' CALL FROM N23TC, BUT WHEN THEY TRIED TO COMMUNICATE WITH THE ACFT, THERE WAS NO RESPONSE. THE CALL WAS REPEATED SVRL TIMES. A CHECK AT THE LOCAL ARPT REVEALED THERE WAS AN ACFT MISSING. A SEARCH WAS INITIATED, BUT THE ACFT WAS NOT FND UNTIL THE FOLLOWING EVENING. IT HAD CRASHED WHILE IN A STEEP NOSE DOWN, SHALLOW LEFT BANK ATTITUDE. PIECES OF WRECKAGE WERE FND UP TO 300 FT FROM WHERE THE ACFT IMPACTED THE GROUND. NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE/MALFUNCTION WAS FND. HOWEVER, THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PLT WAS FLYING IN ADVERSE WX WITH LOW CEILINGS & VISIBILITY. ABOUT 25 MI SSE AT GRAND RAPIDS, MI, THE 0251 EST WAS WAS, IN PART: 300 FT OVERCAST & 1.5 MI VISIBILITY WITH FOG. PRIOR TO THE FLT, THE PLT HAD BEEN CELEBRATING IN A SALOON. TOXICOLOGY CHECKS OF HIS LUNG TISSUE FLUID & BILE SHOWED ALCOHOL LVLS OF 0.104% & 0.128%, RESPECTIVELY.
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: 125 hours in all; 75 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,635 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 24, 1984; 65 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 77D Big Rapids MI at 7:30 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 040° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 300 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 41°F (5°C), dew point 41°F (5°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:51 am from GRR, 25 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.