Cessna 172M accident near Kingsport, Tennessee, March 31, 1998
On March 31, 1998 at about 2:00 am local time, a Cessna 172M, registered N9233H, was destroyed in an accident near Kingsport, Tennessee (Tri-Cities airport). 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 dual student's failure to maintain adequate airspeed which resulted in a stall mush. Contributing to the accident were the flight instructor's inadequate supervision and the night conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 31, 1998 · about 2:00 am local time
- Place
- Kingsport, Tennessee · Tri-Cities · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172M · all 172Ms on the register
- Registration
- N9233H · no longer on the register · serial 17266031
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight was a dual, night VFR cross country flight in preparation for the student's solo cross country. According to the CFI, when they rolled wings level on final approach, the student did not have the runway in sight and was being directed by the CFI. In the process of acquiring a visual on the runway, the flight had gotten low and slow, and the student was making a correction when the wheels collided with an approach light pole. The airplane came to rest inverted, about 300 feet from the runway threshold.
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, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 738 hours in all; 395 in this make and model; 71 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 629 as pilot in command; 168 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,968 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 23, 1998; 80 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 E2D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: GCY Greeneville TN at 1:40 am
- Destination: TRI Bristol TN
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 23, 7,999 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:54 am from TRI
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.