Cessna 172S accident near Stevensville, Maryland, March 7, 2004
On March 7, 2004 at about 1:30 pm local time, a Cessna 172S, registered N317ME, was substantially damaged in an accident near Stevensville, Maryland (Bay Bridge Airport). It was an instructional 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 student pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control while landing. A factor was the student pilot's lack of experience.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 7, 2004 · about 1:30 pm local time
- Place
- Stevensville, Maryland · Bay Bridge Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172S · all 172Ss on the register
- Registration
- N317ME · no longer on the register · serial 172S8562
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot had completed 14 hours of instructional flight, and was performing her first solo flight. She landed on a 2,903-foot long, 60-foot wide, asphalt runway. While on final approach for her second landing, the student pilot noted that the airplane was right of the runway center. She corrected with left rudder; however, the airplane veered sharply left upon touchdown. While trying to regain control, the student pilot inadvertently relaxed the back pressure on the yoke, which caused the propeller to strike the runway. The airplane subsequently departed the right side of the runway, traveled through a ditch, and came to rest upright in a grass area.
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
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 14 hours in all; 14 in this make and model; 1 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: W29 Stevensville MD
- Destination: W29
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 2,903 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
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.
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.