Cessna 172L accident near Northampton, Massachusetts, October 17, 2001
On October 17, 2001, a Cessna 172L, registered N811P, was substantially damaged in an accident near Northampton, Massachusetts (Northampton airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilots' failure to maintain airspeed, which resulted in a loss of control and a hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 17, 2001
- Place
- Northampton, Massachusetts · Northampton · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172L · all 172Ls on the register
- Registration
- N811P · no longer on the register · serial 17260298
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was on approach for landing. According to the pilot, when the airplane was about 10 to 15 feet above the runway, the "airspeed got too slow" and the airplane dropped onto the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the landing gear, wings, and engine. The pilot said he did not experience and mechanical problems with the airplane.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 144 hours in all; 35 in this make and model; 37 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 96 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 18, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,150 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 30, 2001; 20 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: TAN Taunton MA at 10:30 pm
- Destination: 7B2 Northampton MA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 14, 3,506 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 110° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 7,000 ft; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 29.88 inHg
- Observation at 11:55 pm from CEF, 9 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
Other NTSB records under N811P 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.