Cessna 172P accident near Ballston Spa, New York, March 30, 2000
On March 30, 2000 at about 7:24 pm local time, a Cessna 172P, registered N98574, was destroyed in an accident near Ballston Spa, New York (Saratoga County airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
a loss of control for undetermined reason(s).
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 30, 2000 · about 7:24 pm local time
- Place
- Ballston Spa, New York · Saratoga County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172P · all 172Ps on the register
- Registration
- N98574 · no longer on the register · serial 17276313
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor and student pilot departed on a local training flight. Witnesses observed the airplane on its initial climb roll off on its left wing and descend into a wooded area. One witness thought the airplane was in a steep nose up climb prior to rolling left and descending. A post crash fire destroyed the cockpit/cabin, and the seat rails and forward seats could not identified. No evidence of a pre-existing mechanical failure or malfunction was found with the airplane or engine. A previous seat slippage was documented for the left seat in the airplane a month earlier. However, there was no evidence that it had occurred again. The airplane was equipped with primary seat locks to prevent the seats from slipping off of the end of the seat rails. Cessna Aircraft Co. issued a service bulletin on secondary seat locks to prevent rearward seat slippage, which they classified as mandatory. However, the bulletin had not been accomplished on the airplane, and was not required by the FAA. A check of medical records revealed the student pilot was 6 ft 3 inches tall, and weighed 288 pounds, while the flight instructor was 5 ft, 10 inches tall, and weighted 156 pounds.
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 multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 498 hours in all; 175 in this make and model; 117 in the last 90 days; 67 in the last 30 days; 333 as pilot in command; 165 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,230 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 23, 2000; 12 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D2J (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 5B2 at 7:24 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 23, 4,700 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 14 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,200 ft; scat at 3,300 ft
- Temperature: 43°F (6°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:35 pm from 5B2
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.
Other NTSB records under N98574 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.