Cessna 172A accident near Ten Sleep, Wyoming, May 24, 1998
On May 24, 1998 at about 11:55 pm local time, a Cessna 172A, registered N9863T, was destroyed in an accident near Ten Sleep, Wyoming (Lyman Ranch 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).
Preview. This page is not yet listed for search engines.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot's failure to select a proper touchdown point. A factor was his lack of recent experience conducting solo flight operations.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 24, 1998 · about 11:55 pm local time
- Place
- Ten Sleep, Wyoming · Lyman Ranch · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172A · all 172As on the register
- Registration
- N9863T · registry record · serial 47663
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was landing on a 900 foot landing strip located on his private ranch and overshot the runway. The aircraft collided with a new hangar under construction, then impacted a tractor, destroying the aircraft. According to the pilot's logbook, the last dual instruction flight and instructor solo signoff the student received was on September 26, 1996, 20 months prior the accident.
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: 66 hours in all; 1 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 17, 1997; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,075 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: WRL Worland WY at 11:25 pm
- Destination: NONE Ten Sleep WY
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 900 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 60 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 9,000 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:50 pm from WRL, 24 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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 docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site 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 FTW98LA254.