Cessna 172S accident near Richfield, Utah, October 31, 2006
On October 31, 2006 at about 9:50 pm local time, a Cessna 172S, registered N2097G, was substantially damaged in an accident near Richfield, Utah (Richfield 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot's inability to compensate for the gusty crosswinds during the initial part of the landing roll, which resulted in a loss of control and a noseover. Factors associated with the accident are gusty crosswinds, and a mound/berm of dirt alongside the runway.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 31, 2006 · about 9:50 pm local time
- Place
- Richfield, Utah · Richfield Municipal 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
- N2097G · registry record · serial 172S9662
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
On his first approach, the student pilot was too high, and he executed a go-around. During his second attempt, he noticed that there were gusty crosswinds near the ground, but he felt that they were of a magnitude that he would be able to handle. The second approach and initial touchdown were without incident, but soon after the beginning of the landing roll, the airplane was hit by a gust of wind from the right. The gust pushed the airplane toward the left side of the runway, and lifted the right wing. Although the pilot attempted corrective action, he was unable to keep the airplane from departing the left side of the paved runway surface and entering an area of soft terrain. While he was attempting to get the airplane onto the runway, it encountered a mound/berm of dirt, and flipped over onto its back. There was no evidence of any flight control or nose wheel steering problems, and according to the student pilot, the only problem was his inability to compensate for the gusty crosswind conditions.
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: student
- Flight time: 27 hours in all; 27 in this make and model; 15 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days; 3 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 850 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-L2A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Conerstone Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: KPVU Provo UT at 8:20 pm
- Destination: KRIF Richfield UT
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 01, 6,600 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 10 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 19°F (-7°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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number SEA07LA013.