Cessna 172RG accident near Fort Collins, Colorado, August 6, 2005
On August 6, 2005 at about 9:15 pm local time, a Cessna 172RG, registered N5136R, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fort Collins, Colorado (Fort Collins - Loveland 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 pilot's failure to maintain directional control. Contributing factors were the crosswind, the pilot's failure to compensate for the wind conditions --- allowing the airplane to touch down without being properly aligned with the runway --- and the flight instructor's inadequate supervision of the pilot.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 6, 2005 · about 9:15 pm local time
- Place
- Fort Collins, Colorado · Fort Collins - Loveland · 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
- N5136R · no longer on the register · serial 172RG0040
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The certified flight instructor (CFI) candidate was on final approach to runway 33. There was a "light" crosswind from the right (4 to 7 knots), and he crabbed the airplane into the wind. The instructor told the pilot several times to apply "more left rudder." The airplane touched down on the left main gear and the left wing tip scraped the ground. The pilot decided to abort the landing and applied full power. The airplane veered off the runway and struck a taxiway sign. The instructor took control and terminated the attempted abort. AWOS (Automated Weather Observation Station) recorded wind at the time of the accident as 060 degrees at 3 knots.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,190 hours in all; 26 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: February 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 280 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 104 in the last 90 days; 36 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,725.1 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 1, 2005; 6.1 hours since
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming 0-360-F1A6 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Colorado Contrails Aviation, Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: FNL Fort Collins CO at 8:00 pm
- Destination: FNL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 33, 8,500 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.18 inHg
- Observation at 9:55 pm from FNL
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.