Cessna 172N accident near Mintonville, Kentucky, February 2, 1995
On February 2, 1995 at about 6:41 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N734KV, was destroyed in an accident near Mintonville, Kentucky. It was an instructional 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
THE FLIGHTCREW'S INTENTIONAL VFR FLIGHT INTO KNOWN INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS. A FACTOR WAS THE INADEQUATE ALTITUDE TO PREVENT AN INADVERTENT COLLISION WITH AN OBSTRUCTION.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 2, 1995 · about 6:41 pm local time
- Place
- Mintonville, Kentucky · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N734KV · no longer on the register · serial 17268922
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE FLIGHT WAS REPORTED TO BE A DUAL INSTRUCTIONAL FLIGHT FROM CAHOKIA, IL TO GREENSBORO, NC. BOTH PILOTS WERE INSTRUMENT RATED. PRIOR TO DEPARTURE, THEY RECEIVED SEPARATE WEATHER BRIEFINGS DURING WHICH EACH WAS TOLD THAT VFR FLIGHT WAS NOT RECOMMENDED. NO FURTHER VOICE CONTACT WAS MADE WITH THE PILOTS. AN AIRCRAFT, WHICH WAS NOT RADAR IDENTIFIED, WITH TRANSPONDER CODE 1200 AND ALTITUDE REPORTING, WAS OBSERVED TO DEPART THE CAHOKIA AREA AND FLY SOUTHEASTERLY. THIS AIRCRAFT WAS LOST FROM RADAR AT THE CRASH SITE OF N734KV. IT WAS LAST OBSERVED AT 2,500 FT MSL. EXAMINATION OF THE CRASH SITE SHOWED THAT THE AIRCRAFT HAD STRUCK A GUY WIRE OF A RADIO TOWER AT THE 2,440-FT MSL LEVEL. EYEWITNESSES STATED THAT THE WEATHER WAS LOW CLOUDS AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT, AND THAT THE TOP PORTION OF THE TOWER WAS NOT VISIBLE DUE TO THE CLOUDS.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,800 hours in all; 150 in the last 90 days; 50 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,477 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 7, 1994; 62 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CSP Cahokia IL at 4:28 pm
- Destination: LOZ London KY
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 700 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 45°F (7°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:55 pm from SME, 13 miles away
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.
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.