Cessna 172 accident near Hays, Kansas, August 10, 1985
On August 10, 1985 at about 9:00 pm local time, a Cessna 172, registered N98251, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hays, Kansas (Hays airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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 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
- August 10, 1985 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Hays, Kansas · Hays · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N98251 · registry record · serial 98251
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE STUDENT PLT, WHO WAS TAKING HIS PVT PLT CHK RIDE WITH AN FAA-DESIGNATED EXAMINER, REDUCED POWER PREMATURLY ON FINAL APPROACH FOR LANDING AT HAYS. THE ACFT DROPPED, STRIKING THE GROUND IN A LEVEL ATTITUDE, WHICH JAMMED THE NOSE GEAR UPWARDS, DISTORTING AND SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGING THE ACFT'S FIREWALL.
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: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 58 hours in all; 58 in this make and model; 23 in the last 90 days; 32 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 218 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 1, 1985; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,250 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D2 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HYS Hays KS at 8:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 34, 5,700 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 090° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from RSL, 25 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.