Cessna 170A accident near Wharton, Texas, May 19, 1996
On May 19, 1996 at about 6:00 pm local time, a Cessna 170A, registered N9131A, was substantially damaged in an accident near Wharton, Texas (Wharton Municipal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
failure of the pilot to maintain directional control of the airplane during the landing, which resulted in an inadvertent ground swerve.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 19, 1996 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Wharton, Texas · Wharton Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 170A · all 170As on the register
- Registration
- N9131A · registry record · serial 18890
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that, while landing on runway 14 at Wharton Municipal airport, Wharton, Texas, he 'lost control' of the airplane and it ground looped. Damage was sustained to the left wing, the engine mount, the left main landing gear attaching point, and left aileron.
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: 350 hours in all; 150 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 2,050 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-145-2 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: T41 La Porte TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 14, 5,002 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 20 knots, gusting 25
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number FTW96LA223.