Cessna 172 accident near Ten Sleep, Wyoming, August 9, 1986
On August 9, 1986 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Cessna 172, registered N4016F, was destroyed in an accident near Ten Sleep, Wyoming. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured. 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 October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 9, 1986 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Ten Sleep, Wyoming · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N4016F · no longer on the register · serial 36916
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT BECAME LOST/DISORIENTED AND INADVERTENTLY ENTERED THE NARROW CANYON IN A MOUNTAIN PASS. HE ATTEMPTED TO LAND ON A PUBLIC HIGHWAY AT 7,500 FEET MSL WHEN IT BECAME APPARENT THE ACFT WOULD NOT CLIMB FAST ENOUGH TO CLEAR RAPIDLY RISING TERRAIN AND THAT IT WAS NOT POSSIBLE TO REVERSE COURSE IN THE NARROW PASS. ON SHORT FINAL THE PLT OBSERVED VEHICULAR TRAFFIC APPROACH FROM AROUND A SWITCHBACK CURVE AND VEERED OFF THE HIGHWAY WHERE THE ACFT IMPACTED STEEP, ROCKY TERRAIN.
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: 257 hours in all; 257 in this make and model; 16 in the last 90 days; 191 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,044 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 7, 1986; 94 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CDR Chadron NE at 4:00 pm
- Destination: THP Thermopolis WY
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:45 pm from WRL, 31 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.
Other NTSB records under N4016F 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.