Cessna 172M accident near Chandler, Arizona, November 13, 2001
On November 13, 2001 at about 6:10 pm local time, a Cessna 172M, registered N1897V, was substantially damaged in an accident near Chandler, Arizona (Chandler 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).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Failure of the student pilot to maintain directional control during landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 13, 2001 · about 6:10 pm local time
- Place
- Chandler, Arizona · Chandler · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172M · all 172Ms on the register
- Registration
- N1897V · registry record · serial 17263785
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
On landing, the airplane veered off the runway, struck a taxiway sign, and sheared off the main landing gear. The student was on his first supervised solo flight. He completed one landing, taxied back, and the accident occurred on the second landing. He maintained an approach speed between 70 and 75 knots until over the numbers. He had the flaps at 40 degrees and the throttle in about 1/2 inch. He reduced the throttle by half to land and landed a hard on the main gear. The airplane bounced about 2 feet back into the air, so he fully reduced the power and the airplane settled back to the runway. The airplane began to veer to the right; he countered with a little left rudder, but did not feel a correction. He thought the airplane would leave the runway, and removed his right foot from the rudder pedal. He stomped on the left pedal, but could not prevent the airplane from departing the runway.
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: 23 hours in all; 23 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,198 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 9, 2001; 12 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Sunbird Flight Services
The flight
- Departed from: CHD Chandler AZ at 5:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 22R, 4,401 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 15,000 ft; scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.01 inHg
- Observation at 5:55 pm from IWA, 7 miles away
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.
Other NTSB records under N1897V the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.