Cessna 172D accident near Hawthorne, Florida, March 2, 1996
On March 2, 1996, a Cessna 172D, registered N2456U, was destroyed in an accident near Hawthorne, Florida. 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
the pilot's failure to maintain the proper glidepath during an instrument approach.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 2, 1996
- Place
- Hawthorne, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172D · all 172Ds on the register
- Registration
- N2456U · no longer on the register · serial 7250056
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot requested and received a change in destination airport due to weather from ATC. The pilot was vectored on a right downwind to the new destination airport for an ILS approach. The pilot was cleared by ATC for the approach and instructed to maintain 2,000 feet until established on the approach. The pilot acknowledged the transmissions and there were no further transmissions received from the pilot. The airplane was last observed on radar 3 miles east of the locator outer marker. The airplane wreckage was located the following morning.
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: commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 409 hours in all; 367 in this make and model; 257 in the last 90 days; 83 in the last 30 days; 347 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,135 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 1996; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: AUO Auburn AL at 10:24 pm
- Destination: GNV Gainesville FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 030° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
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.