Cessna 172S accident near Chandler, Arizona, August 8, 2004
On August 8, 2004 at about 5:42 pm local time, a Cessna 172S, registered N5327G, was substantially damaged in an accident near Chandler, Arizona (Chandler Municipal 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
the student pilot's failure to abort the takeoff. A contributing factor was the pilot's failure to maintain directional control.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 8, 2004 · about 5:42 pm local time
- Place
- Chandler, Arizona · Chandler Municipal Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172S · all 172Ss on the register
- Registration
- N5327G · registry record · serial 172S9357
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane ran off the departure end of the runway on a touch and go landing and went into a chain link fence. The student solo pilot was performing touch and go's and was in right traffic for runway 22R. He flared about a third down the runway, landed the airplane, raised the flaps, and applied full throttle. The airplane veered left towards the left edge of the runway. The pilot applied right rudder and checked his airspeed. He then noticed that he was close to the left side of the runway. He reduced the throttle and increased right rudder input. The airplane returned towards the centerline and he added full throttle. The airplane approached the end of the runway before it had reached flying speed. The airplane went over the runway threshold, continued over dirt then grass, and finally, into the airport boundary chain link fence. After the airplane came to rest the pilot shut down the engine and secured the electrical equipment. The pilot indicated that the airplane had no mechanical failures or malfunctions during the flight.
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
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 53 hours in all; 52 in this make and model; 53 in the last 90 days; 33 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-L2A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: KP19 Chandler AZ
- Destination: KCHD Chandler AZ
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 22R
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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 N5327G 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.