Cessna 172 accident near Johnson City, Tennessee, May 12, 2021
On May 12, 2021 at about 9:45 pm local time, a 1959 Cessna 172, registered N6344E, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Johnson City, Tennessee (Johnson City airport). It was an instructional 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 student pilot’s excessive airspeed during the landing approach and his delayed remedial action, which resulted in the airplane striking obstacles during an aborted landing. Contributing was the pilot’s decision to land with a tailwind.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 12, 2021 · about 9:45 pm local time
- Place
- Johnson City, Tennessee · Johnson City · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172, built 1959 · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N6344E · registry record · serial 46444
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot was returning to his home airport from a cross-country solo flight. The winds were favoring the opposite direction runway, and he touched down “a little fast” with 20º of flaps extended about 1,000 feet down the 3,000-foot-long runway. He applied the brakes and the airplane veered to the right (he thought the left brake had failed). He then shut off the carburetor heat, retracted the flaps, and added power to abort the landing with about 300 feet of pavement remaining. He was able to get airborne before the end of the runway but was in ground effect. The airplane flew over a road, impacted a tree with the right wing while airborne, hit a truck, and the corner of a detached garage. The airplane then rolled a short distance, nosed over, and came to rest. The airplane’s fuselage, wings, and empennage were substantially damaged during the accident sequence. Postaccident testing revealed that both the left and right wheel brakes were functional.
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
What happened, in order
- Landing area overshoot during landing defining event
- Collision during takeoff/land during landing (aborted after touchdown)
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Identification/recognition › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Airspeed › Not attained/maintained
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Tailwind › Decision related to condition
Pilot
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 40.2 hours in all; 40.2 in this make and model; 32 in the last 90 days; 13.8 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,736 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 12, 2021
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: GCY Greeneville TN at 9:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 22, 3,000 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 9,000 ft
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.22 inHg
- Observation at 5:53 pm from KTRI, 8 miles away
Weather report (METAR): KTRI 122153Z 15004KT 10SM BKN090 14/02 A3022 RMK AO2 SLP219 T01440022
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
5 documents, released by the NTSB on August 31, 2021. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 11 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Witness Statements and Interview Summaries | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Photo Array | PDF, 16 pages | View Download |
| 4 | Security Camera Video 1 | AVI file | Download |
| 5 | Security Camera Video 2 | MOV file | Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
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.