Cessna 172RG accident near San Diego, California, November 12, 1997
On November 12, 1997 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Cessna 172RG, registered N9451D, was substantially damaged in an accident near San Diego, California (Montgomery Field). 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
Overload of the main gear actuator piston and the subsequent collapse of the landing gear.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 12, 1997 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- San Diego, California · Montgomery Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172RG · all 172RGs on the register
- Registration
- N9451D · no longer on the register · serial 172RG1167
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot and his instructor visually checked that the landing gear was down. On the landing roll the aircraft started to vibrate, and then rotated to the left. The instructor pilot shut down the engine and the right landing gear collapsed. The main gear actuator piston for the left main landing gear was found broken. A determination as to when the actuator piston was broken could not be made due to the extent of the damage. An examination of the aircraft logbook revealed that the main landing gear actuator piston had accumulated 1,530.2 hours since installation. The aircraft was examined on-scene with no further anomalies noted. An examination found beach marks on the fracture surface characteristic of a fatigue crack growth. The examination revealed that the fracture outside of the fatigue region was the result of a single event overload and not due to the fatigue crack.
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: 382 hours in all; 54 in this make and model; 157 in the last 90 days; 69 in the last 30 days; 295 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 11,826 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 6, 1997; 79 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-FIAG (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MYF at 6:00 pm
- Destination: MYF
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 28L, 3,399 ft by 60 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 20,000 ft; scat at 9,000 ft
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:47 pm from MYF
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.
Other NTSB records under N9451D 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.