Cessna 172P accident near Lander, Wyoming, May 22, 1983
On May 22, 1983 at about 1:30 am local time, a Cessna 172P, registered N54609, was destroyed in an accident near Lander, Wyoming. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
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
- May 22, 1983 · about 1:30 am local time
- Place
- Lander, Wyoming · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172P · all 172Ps on the register
- Registration
- N54609 · no longer on the register · serial 172-75011
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT NOON ON 5/21/83, THE PLT DEPARTED RIVERTON, WY ON A FLT TO OGDEN, UT TO TRANSPORT A MINISTER BACK TO RIVERTON FOR A WEDDING. AFTER ARRIVING AT OGDEN, HE OBTAINED A WX BRIEFING FOR THE RETURN FLT. HE WAS WARNED OF POSSIBLE THUNDERSTORMACTIVITY, TURBULENCE, LOW CEILINGS & STRONG, GUSTY WINDS. THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PLT WAS TOLD THAT IN THE VICINITY OF LANDER & ROCK SPRINGS, WY, THERE WERE RAIN SHOWERS, AND WITH THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY, VFR FLT MAY NOT BE POSSIBLE. THE PLTFILED A VFR FLT PLAN & STATED HE WOULD 'TAKE A LOOK-SEE.' AT 1729, HE TOOK OFF. THERE WAS NO EN ROUTE RADIO CONTACT, EXCEPT WHEN HE REQUESTED & WAS PROVIDED THE RIVERTON WX. AT APRX 1930, A RESIDENT NEAR THE CRASH SITE HEARD A SMALL ACFTFLYING LOW. SHE REPORTED THUNDER, LIGHTNING, THICK FOG & HEAVY SNOWFALL AT THAT TIME. WHEN THE ACFT DID NOT ARRIVE AT RIVERTON, A SEARCH WAS BEGUN. IT WAS FOUND NEAR A MOUNTAIN PASS WHERE IT CRASHED ON A RIDGE IN A 45 DEG NOSE DOWN, WINGSLEVEL ATTITUDE. THERE WAS VIRTUALLY NO MOVEMENT AFTER IMPACT. NO PREIMPACT/MECHANICAL FAILURE/MALFUNCTION WAS REPORTED.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 229 hours in all; 100 in this make and model; 1 in the last 90 days; 142 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 383 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 18, 1983; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Avco Lycoming O-320-D2J (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OGD Ogden UT at 11:29 pm
- Destination: RIW Riverton WY
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 41°F (5°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 am from LND, 23 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
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.