Cessna 170A accident near Rogersville, Tennessee, November 26, 1989
On November 26, 1989 at about 11:15 pm local time, a Cessna 170A, registered N9192A, was destroyed in an accident near Rogersville, Tennessee. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
CONTINUED FLIGHT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS BY A NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT RESULTING IN SPATIAL DISORIENTATION AND A LOSS OF AIRCRAFT CONTROL. FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE PILOT'S OVERCONFIDENCE IN HIS ABILITY TO FLY IN INSTRUMENT CONDITIONS, THE ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS, THE DARK NIGHT, AND THE PILOT'S LACK OF NIGHT FLYING EXPERIENCE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 26, 1989 · about 11:15 pm local time
- Place
- Rogersville, Tennessee · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 170A · all 170As on the register
- Registration
- N9192A · no longer on the register · serial 18953
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING THE PILOT'S INITIAL WX BRIEFING AT 1101, HE WAS ADVISED VFR FLIGHT NOT RECOMMENDED THROUGH MOUNTAINS UNTIL COLD FRONT HAD PASSED. DURING A LATER 1331 WX BRIEFING HE WAS INFORMED THAT WX CONDITIONS WERE DETERIORATING SOUTH OF ROANOKE, VA, THROUGH HIS DESTINATION AIRPORT. THERE WERE FLT PRECAUTIONS FOR LIGHT-MODERATE RIME ICING FROM FREEZING LEVEL OF 8,500 FT TO 12,500 FT. LATER AN UNIDENTIFIED ACFT WAS OBSERVED ON RADAR CIRCLING AT 8,500 FT, THEN DESCEND TO 5,500 FT, THEN HEAD SOUTHWESTBOUND NEXT TO THE FINAL APPROACH COURSE FOR ILS RWY 23 AT TRI-CITY REGIONAL AIRPORT. IT THEN TURNED WESTBOUND AT 1810 BEFORE DISAPPEARING FROM RADAR. THE AIRPLANE WAS OBSERVED DESCENDING ALONG A RIDGELINE; GROUND FOG TOTALLY OBSCURED THE TOPS. THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED TERRAIN AT ABOUT A 90-DEGREE NOSE-DOWN ATTITUDE. PILOT'S TOTAL RECORDED NIGHT TIME WAS 5.5 HRS; LAST FLIGHT 1/89. LAST BIENNIAL 29 MONTHS BEFORE ACCIDENT. PILOT HAD PREVIOUSLY SPOKE OF 'PUSHING THE LIMITS' IN REGARD TO FLYING IN MARGINAL WX CONDITIONS.
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: 658 hours in all; 215 in this make and model; 42 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 508 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,110 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 1, 1989; 173 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,050 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: VA87 Manassas VA
- Destination: TYS Knoxville TN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:50 pm from TRI, 29 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.