Cessna 172S accident near Cambridge, Maryland, September 30, 2006
On September 30, 2006 at about 5:35 pm local time, a Cessna 172S, registered N61WT, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cambridge, Maryland (Cambridge-Dorchester 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 failure to maintain directional control while landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 30, 2006 · about 5:35 pm local time
- Place
- Cambridge, Maryland · Cambridge-Dorchester Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172S · all 172Ss on the register
- Registration
- N61WT · registry record · serial 172S9818
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was flying a Cessna 172S, and landing on runway 16; a 4,476-foot-long, 75-foot-wide, asphalt runway. After touchdown, the airplane started to drift to the right. The pilot corrected the airplane to the left, and added power. The airplane then departed the left side of the runway, struck a ditch, and came to rest in a grass area off the left side of the runway. The pilot reported a total flight experience of approximately 722 hours; of which, about 258 hours were in the same make and model as the accident airplane. The pilot further stated that according to the automated weather observation system (AWOS), the winds were from 190 degrees at 10 knots, variable. The reported wind at an airport 12 miles north of the accident site, about the time of the accident, was from 170 degrees at 6 knots.
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; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 722 hours in all; 258 in this make and model; 12 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 435 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: ESN Easton MD
- Destination: CGE Cambridge MD
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 16, 4,476 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 10 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,600 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 29.89 inHg
- Observation at 5:51 pm from ESN, 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.