Cessna 172I accident near Tucson, Arizona, September 2, 2002
On September 2, 2002 at about 7:02 pm local time, a Cessna 172I, registered N404SW, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tucson, Arizona (Tucson International 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the certified flight instructor's failure to maintain an adequate distance from a jet during taxi. A factor was the local/ground controller's failure to issue a safety alert or cautionary advisory to the pilot with regards to the jet blast of the departing Boeing 737.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 2, 2002 · about 7:02 pm local time
- Place
- Tucson, Arizona · Tucson International · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172I · all 172Is on the register
- Registration
- N404SW · registry record · serial 17256702
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The right wing impacted the pavement after encountering jet blast from a transport category airplane taxiing onto a runway. The accident airplane had been instructed by ground control to taxi along a route that placed it behind a Boeing 737, which was holding short of the runway for a takeoff clearance. The certified flight instructor (CFI) directed his student to taxi as far to the right side of the 75-foot-wide taxiway as possible to avoid the jet blast of the Boeing 737. As their airplane passed behind the jet, the Boeing spooled up its engines and proceeded onto the runway for takeoff. The CFI and student were on the ground controller's frequency, and were not aware that the jet had been cleared for takeoff by the local controller on tower frequency. Controllers issued no safety alerts or cautionary advisories as instructed by Air Traffic Control Order 7110.65N, 3-1-4. The airplane's left wing rose into the air while the right impacted the pavement twice. The propeller also struck the pavement. Ground scars and a paint streak were near the right edge and outside of the taxiway boundary line.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 725 hours in all; 341 in this make and model; 46 in the last 90 days; 32 in the last 30 days; 630 as pilot in command; 453 on instruments
- Last flight review: June 29, 2002
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,900 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 17, 2002; 41 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Avco Lycoming O-320-E2D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Arizona Aero-Tech
The flight
- Departed from: TUS Tucson AZ at 6:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 11R, 8,408 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 97°F (36°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.98 inHg
- Observation at 7:02 pm from TUS, 1 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.
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 LAX02LA274.