Cessna 172P accident near West Chicago, Illinois, February 24, 1996
On February 24, 1996 at about 4:22 pm local time, a Cessna 172P, registered N99341, was substantially damaged in an accident near West Chicago, Illinois (Dupage Airport). It was an instructional 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the student pilot's misjudging the flare. A factor was the gusts.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 24, 1996 · about 4:22 pm local time
- Place
- West Chicago, Illinois · Dupage Airport · 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
- N99341 · registry record · serial 17276434
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot was conducting a full stop landing following a local solo flight. This was his first solo flight out of the airport traffic pattern. The pilot stated that he lost control of the airplane during the flare and the airplane landed hard on the nose landing gear.
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: student
- Flight time: 32 hours in all; 32 in this make and model; 32 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 1 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 12,164 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 24, 1996; 85 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D2J (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DPA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 28, 4,751 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 15 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:55 pm from DPA, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Other NTSB records under N99341 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CHI96LA097.