Cessna 177 accident near Warrenton, Virginia, August 29, 2004
On August 29, 2004 at about 3:15 pm local time, a Cessna 177, registered N2975X, was substantially damaged in an accident near Warrenton, Virginia (Warrenton-Fauquier Airport). It was a personal 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 pilot's incorrect aborted landing procedure, which resulted in a collision with terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 29, 2004 · about 3:15 pm local time
- Place
- Warrenton, Virginia · Warrenton-Fauquier Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 177 · all 177s on the register
- Registration
- N2975X · no longer on the register · serial 17700375
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While on final approach, the airplane was too low, and the pilot increased engine power to correct. However, the pilot overcorrected, and the airplane landed long. The pilot then attempted to abort the landing by adding full power, and fully retracting the flaps. During the attempt, the airplane's empennage struck an embankment, separated, and the airplane came to rest upright at the departure end of the runway. Review of an owner's manual for the make and model airplane revealed that the flaps should have been retracted half-way during an aborted landing.
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
- Flight time: 392 hours in all; 10 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 327 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Maximum gross weight: 2,350 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EZF Fredricksburg VA at 2:30 pm
- Destination: W66 Warrenton VA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 14, 4,106 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 5 knots
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.97 inHg
- Observation at 2:55 pm from HEF, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.