Cessna 172P accident near Longmont, Colorado, April 19, 1998
On April 19, 1998 at about 11:15 pm local time, a Cessna 172P, registered N6174K, was substantially damaged in an accident near Longmont, Colorado (Vance Brand Municipal airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot inadvertently stalling the aircraft during the landing touchdown. Factors were a crosswind and the pilot's lack of total flight experience.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 19, 1998 · about 11:15 pm local time
- Place
- Longmont, Colorado · Vance Brand Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172P · all 172Ps on the register
- Registration
- N6174K · no longer on the register · serial 17274171
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While on final approach to land at Vance Brand Municipal Airport, the wind was a 10 to 15 knot left crosswind. As the student pilot (he had a total of 53 hours of flight time) started to flare, he got blown off the runway centerline to the right, then to the left. The stall warning went off, and he pitched the nose down in an attempt to build airspeed. When he pitched the nose back up to gain altitude, the stall warning went off again, and the aircraft stalled. The aircraft departed the left side of the runway into the grass. The airplane impacted the ground, separating the nose landing gear, bending the fuselage, and damaging both wings, the engine mount, and the firewall.
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: student
- Flight time: 53 hours in all; 53 in this make and model; 12 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,000 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 24, 1998; 50 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D2J (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: STK Sterling CO
- Destination: 2V2
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 29, 4,800 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 13 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 15,000 ft; scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:46 pm from BJC
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.