Cessna 172RG accident near Lawrenceville, Illinois, February 9, 1985
On February 9, 1985 at about 6:30 pm local time, a Cessna 172RG, registered N6464R, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lawrenceville, Illinois (Lawrenceville Vincennes 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 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
- February 9, 1985 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Lawrenceville, Illinois · Lawrenceville Vincennes · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172RG · all 172RGs on the register
- Registration
- N6464R · registry record · serial 172RG0184
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PRIVATE PLT & HIS INSTRUCTOR WERE PRACTICING INSTRUMENT APPROACHES. THE INSTRUCTOR STATED THAT THE FUEL GAGES WERE READING LOW & THE VOR NEEDLE WAS OSCILLATING, SO THEY DECIDED TO MAKE A STRAIGHT-IN LANDING. HE STATED THAT THEY LOWERED THE GEAR & FLAPS, BUT AFTER TOUCHING DOWN, THE MAIN GEAR FOLDED WITH THE NOSE GEAR LOCKED IN THE DOWN POSITION. AFTER THE ACFT WAS JACKED UP, AN OPERATIONAL CHECK OF THE GEAR WAS MADE. THE LANDING GEAR & ELECTRICAL SYS OPERATED NORMALLY. THE INSTRUCTOR PLT COULD NOT DEFINITELY SAY THAT HE OBSERVED A GEAR DOWN & LOCKED INDICATION.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 337 hours in all; 63 in this make and model; 20 in the last 90 days; 218 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,695 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, April 26, 1984; 95 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-F1A6 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 9, 5,200 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 20,000 ft; scat at 12,000 ft
- Temperature: 25°F (-4°C), dew point 10°F (-12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:58 pm from HUF, 45 miles away
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.