Cessna 172M accident near Wakefield, Virginia, October 31, 2006
On October 31, 2006 at about 7:00 pm local time, a Cessna 172M, registered N20931, was substantially damaged in an accident near Wakefield, Virginia (Wakefield Municipal 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 control during the landing. A factor to the accident was the wind gusts.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 31, 2006 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Wakefield, Virginia · Wakefield Municipal Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172M · all 172Ms on the register
- Registration
- N20931 · no longer on the register · serial 17263871
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While on a solo cross country flight in a Cessna 172M, the student pilot elected to divert instead of continuing with his planned flight after the airplane's radios began to operate intermittently and the electrical system failed. During the landing at the diversionary airport, the winds were gusting at 18 to 25 knots, though the winds had been originally forecasted to be favorable for his route of flight. During the landing the airplane lost "lift," touched down on the nose landing gear, and porpoised about three times before the student pilot was able to regain control. A post accident examination of the airplane revealed that it had incurred substantial damage. No anomalies with the electrical system were discovered.
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: 76 hours in all; 70 in this make and model; 26 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 14,107 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Norfolk Aviation Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: EMV Emporia VA at 6:30 pm
- Destination: AKQ
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 20, 4,337 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 18 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.01 inHg
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.