Cessna 172N accident near Prescott, Arizona, November 13, 1998
On November 13, 1998 at about 11:00 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N2401E, was substantially damaged in an accident near Prescott, Arizona. 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
The failure of the flight instructor to provide adequate supervision of the student pilot during a simulated emergency landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 13, 1998 · about 11:00 pm local time
- Place
- Prescott, Arizona · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N2401E · no longer on the register · serial 17271268
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor and student pilot were conducting a simulated engine failure from approximately 3,500 feet agl. The student inadvertently shut the fuel selector off without the instructor noticing. About 500 feet agl, the instructor asked the student to do a go-around. There was no response when full throttle was applied, so the instructor took the controls and performed an emergency landing. The left landing gear hit a tree stump and was sheared off. The aircraft came to rest in an upright position.
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, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,090 hours in all; 880 in this make and model; 161 in the last 90 days; 96 in the last 30 days; 980 as pilot in command; 805 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,306 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, November 5, 1998; 15 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A4M (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PRC AZ at 10:10 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 65 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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 N2401E 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.