Cessna 170A accident near Plentywood, Montana, April 13, 1983
On April 13, 1983 at about 1:10 am local time, a Cessna 170A, registered N9592A, was substantially damaged in an accident near Plentywood, Montana (Sherwood airport). It was a personal 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).
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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 13, 1983 · about 1:10 am local time · cases in 1983
- Place
- Plentywood, Montana · Sherwood · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 170A · all 170As on the register
- Registration
- N9592A · registry record · serial 19153
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
PILOT WAS PRACTICING TOUCH AND GO LANDINGS ON RUNWAY 30. PILOT STATED THAT ON LANDING ROLL AS HE CLOSED THE CARBURETOR HEAT CONTROL PREPARING FOR ANOTHER TAKEOFF A GUST CAUGHT THE RIGHT WING LIFTING IT UP. THE PILOT CORRECTED BY USING RIGHT AILERON AND LEFT RUDDER BUT THE AIRCRAFT WEATHERVANED INTO THE WIND AND WENT OFF THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. THE WIND WAS 020 DEGREES, 5 KTS. THE LEFT WING WAS BENT TWO FEET INBOARD FROM THE WINGTIP.
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: 185 hours in all; 4 in this make and model; 60 in the last 90 days; 20 in the last 30 days; 160 as pilot in command; 11 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,026 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 4, 1983; 12 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Franklin O-300 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 30, 3,900 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 020° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 12,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N9592A on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 170 2,085 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,684 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Franklin O-300 · as the NTSB recorded it
- Sher-Wood Airport · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Montana 1,121 since 1982 · 166 in the last ten years
- Montana 6,049 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/DEN83LA098.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.