Cessna R172 accident near Craig, Colorado, June 17, 2016
On June 17, 2016 at about 1:45 pm local time, a 1977 Cessna R172, registered N998M, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Craig, Colorado (Craig-Moffat airport). It was a personal 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot's failure to maintain an adequate glide path during landing, which resulted in the airplane landing short of the runway and the nose wheel impacting the runway edge and substantial damage to the firewall.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 17, 2016 · about 1:45 pm local time
- Place
- Craig, Colorado · Craig-Moffat · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna R172 K, built 1977 · all R172s on the register
- Registration
- N998M · registry record · serial R1722333
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot reported that during his fifth solo touch and go landing, the airplane landed short of the runway and impacted the runway asphalt edge with the nose landing gear. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the firewall. The student pilot reported that there were no pre impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation.
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 undershoot during landing
- Abnormal runway contact during landing
- Hard landing during landing defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Student/instructed pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Descent/approach/glide path › Not attained/maintained
Pilot
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 62 hours in all; 51 in this make and model; 11 in the last 90 days; 11 in the last 30 days; 16 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 19, 2016
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor IO-360 SER (piston); 6,052 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SBS Steamboat Springs CO at 12:00 pm
- Destination: CAG Craig CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 25, 5,606 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.25 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 pm from KCAG
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.
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 GAA16CA327.