Cessna 172N accident near Rigby, Idaho, January 28, 2004
On January 28, 2004 at about 5:20 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N734CB, was substantially damaged in an accident near Rigby, Idaho. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor's failure to follow procedures, i.e., operating the non-icing certified aircraft in known icing conditions contrary to the pilot operators handbook which resulted in ice accretion and ultimately a stall and loss of control in flight. Contributing factors were the icing conditions and degraded aircraft performance.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 28, 2004 · about 5:20 pm local time
- Place
- Rigby, Idaho · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N734CB · registry record · serial 17268740
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor and non-instrument rated private pilot departed Pocatello, Idaho, on an instrument trainer for the private pilot. The instructor had filed an IFR flight plan to Rexburg, Idaho, and acknowledged an awareness of an AIRMET advising of occasional moderate rime to mixed icing-in-clouds below 16,000 feet. En route to Rexburg the aircraft entered a holding pattern at Idaho Falls, Idaho, during which it picked up what the private pilot described as "light" ice and the instructor characterized as a "trace" during the hold. Both pilots reported removing ice from the aircraft following the landing at Rexburg. The student obtained an updated weather brief where icing was again discussed and he filed an IFR flight plan from Rexburg back to Pocatello. The student and instructor then departed Rexburg for Pocatello. During the climb the aircraft began picking up ice and the instructor initially attempted to divert to Idaho Falls but upon breaking out of the clouds and noting the Rigby, Idaho, airport passing abeam, changed his intended landing site to Rigby. During the student's course reversal back toward Rigby the aircraft began descending rapidly eventually stalling prior to ground impact in a snow-covered agricultural field. The Cessna 172N was not equipped with any anti-icing or de-icing equipment with the exception of carburetor heat. The Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH) for the aircraft cautions that "Flight into known icing conditions is prohibited" both as a placard within the aircraft and as a flight limitation.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,365 hours in all; 601 in this make and model; 125 in the last 90 days; 81 in the last 30 days; 1,905 as pilot in command; 1,029 on instruments
- Last flight review: October 23, 2003
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: serious injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 130 hours in all; 100 in this make and model; 15 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 90 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 1, 2003
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 130 hours in all; 100 in this make and model; 15 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 90 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 1, 2003
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,855 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, December 24, 2003; 21 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Avcenter, Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: RXE Rexburg ID at 5:00 pm
- Destination: PIH Pocatello ID
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 21 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 500 ft
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 32°F (0°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:26 pm from IDA, 9 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.