Cessna 172RG accident near Cross City, Florida, December 2, 1983
On December 2, 1983, a Cessna 172RG, registered N9682B, was destroyed in an accident near Cross City, Florida. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. 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 2, 1983
- Place
- Cross City, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172RG · all 172RGs on the register
- Registration
- N9682B · no longer on the register · serial 172RG0965
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE IN THE VICINITY OF CROSS CITY THE PLT REQUESTED VFR FLT FOLLOWING FROM JACKSONVILLE ARTCC. WHILE HE WAS IN RADIO &RADAR CONTACT, THE CONTROLLER SUDDENLY LOST RADAR CONTACT WITH THE FLT. RADAR INDICATED THAT THE ACFT MADE A RAPID DESCENT FROM THE CRUISE ALTITUDE OF 4,500 FT MSL.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 10,094 hours in all; 94 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 425 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 9, 1983; 55 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-F1A6 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: C31 Crystal River FL at 11:35 pm
- Destination: DHN Dothan AL
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 12 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.
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.