Cessna 172N accident near Plano, Texas, December 5, 1990
On December 5, 1990 at about 1:23 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N6297D, was destroyed in an accident near Plano, Texas (Dallas North airport). It was a business 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 PILOT'S FAILURE TO FOLLOW THE APPROVED START PROCEDURES WHICH RESULTED IN AN INDUCTION FIRE AND THE DESTRUCTION OF THE AIRPLANE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 5, 1990 · about 1:23 pm local time
- Place
- Plano, Texas · Dallas North · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N6297D · no longer on the register · serial 172-72702
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER HAND PROPPING THE ENGINE ABOUT 15 TIMES AND PRIMING IT THREE TIMES THE PILOT ATTEMPTED A START. HE SAID THAT THE ENGINE HIT THREE TIMES AND THEN STOPPED. HE SUBSEQUENTLY PRIMED THE ENGINE TWO MORE TIMES AND ATTEMPTED A SECOND START. ACCORDING TO THE PILOT THE ENGINE HIT ONCE AND THEN HE OBSERVED SMOKE AND FLAMES COMING FROM THE COWLING. HE ABANDONED THE AIRPLANE AND CALLED THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, HOWEVER, THE AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYED. IT APPEARED THAT THE FIRE ORGINATED IN THE AREA OF THE AIR INTAKE.
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: 244 hours in all; 49 in this make and model; 39 in the last 90 days; 11 in the last 30 days; 207 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,106 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 9, 1990; 24 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Stranmel Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: F26
- Destination: SHV Shreveport LA
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 10 knots
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:47 pm from ADS, 15 miles away
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.
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.