Cessna 172 accident near Freeport, Illinois, July 10, 1996
On July 10, 1996 at about 7:00 pm local time, a Cessna 172, registered N5542R, was substantially damaged in an accident near Freeport, Illinois (Dornink airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's misjudgment of altitude and distance on final approach, and his failure to attain the proper touchdown point for landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 10, 1996 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Freeport, Illinois · Dornink · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N5542R · no longer on the register · serial 17253126
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that he extended 30 degrees of flaps in the traffic pattern. On final approach, he realized that the airplane was 'too low to land on a level section of the runway, there is an upslope on the south end of runway 36.' The pilot said he applied power to correct the situation, but the airplane stalled and touched down short of the runway on an upsloping overrun area. The airplane then angled into a soy bean field to the left of the extended runway centerline and was damaged.
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: 180 hours in all; 32 in this make and model; 9 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 116 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,009 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 17, 1996; 33 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: C35 Reedsburg WI at 6:00 pm
- Destination: C86
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 2,600 ft by 140 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 9 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:54 pm from RFD
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.
Other NTSB records under N5542R the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.