Cessna 172N accident near Hopedale, Massachusetts, November 15, 1999
On November 15, 1999 at about 2:00 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N738NL, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hopedale, Massachusetts (Hopedale Industrial Park airport). It was an instructional 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).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
was the student pilot's improper flare that resulted in a bounced landing and the flight instructor's delay in taking remedial action.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 15, 1999 · about 2:00 pm local time
- Place
- Hopedale, Massachusetts · Hopedale Industrial Park
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N738NL · no longer on the register · serial 17270107
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot returned to his home airport with his flight instructor. The student attempted the landing with a 50 degree left crosswind of 12 to 21 knots. The airplane bounced, 'turned into the wind', and departed the left side of the runway. The flight instructor assumed the flight controls but was unable to recover the airplane before it crossed a fence line parallel to the runway, struck the ground, and nosed over.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 397 hours in all; 94 in this make and model; 115 in the last 90 days; 64 in the last 30 days; 229 as pilot in command; 51 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,606 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 21, 1999; 19 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 1B6 at 12:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 3,172 ft by 90 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 17 knots, gusting 22
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,900 ft
- Temperature: 41°F (5°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:55 pm from SFZ, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.