Cessna 172 accident near Fallbrook, California, December 20, 1987
On December 20, 1987 at about 11:00 pm local time, a Cessna 172, registered N7970B, was destroyed in an accident near Fallbrook, California (Fallbrook airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 20, 1987 · about 11:00 pm local time
- Place
- Fallbrook, California · Fallbrook · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N7970B · no longer on the register · serial 29770
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT STATED THAT WHILE ON SHORT FINAL TO RWY 36, APPROX 5 TO 6 FT AGL OVR THE RWY, HE NOTICED ANOTHER ACFT APPROACHING FM THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION. HE INITIATED A CLIMBING RIGHT TURN AND COLLIDED WITH A TREE LOCATED ABT 150 FT TO THE RIGHT OF THE RWY CENTERLINE. WITNESSES INDICATED THAT THE WIND FAVORED RWY 18 AND THAT THE PROXIMITY OF THE TWO ACFT WAS NOT A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR TO THE ACCD. THE PLT OF THE OTHER ACFT STATED THAT THE UNICOM OPERATOR ADVISED HIM THAT THE WIND FAVORED THE USE OF RWY 18 AND THAT HE TRANSMITTED HIS POSITION ON THE UNICOM FREQUENCY ON BOTH BASE AND FINAL FOR RWY 18. HE ALSO ADDED THAT HE OBSERVED N7970B SHORTLY AFTER IT HAD LIFTED OFF OF RWY 36 AND THAT IT 'APPEARED TO HAVE AN UNUSUALLY HIGH ANGLE OF ATTACK, WENT INTO A RIGHT BANK, AND THEN APPEARED TO STALL...'
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 779 hours in all; 657 in this make and model; 17 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 712 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,964 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 3, 1987; 90 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,075 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 2,160 ft by 70 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 8 knots
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:46 pm from CRQ, 13 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
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.