Cessna 177A accident near Laurel, Montana, March 23, 1998
On March 23, 1998, a Cessna 177A, registered N177MT, was substantially damaged in an accident near Laurel, Montana (Laurel Muni airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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 pilot's excessive descent rate on final, and improper recovery from a bounced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 23, 1998
- Place
- Laurel, Montana · Laurel Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 177A · all 177As on the register
- Registration
- N177MT · no longer on the register · serial 17701298
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was practicing touch-and-go landings in a crosswind. On the second landing, the airplane developed an excessive sink rate on final, hit hard and bounced into the air. The pilot added full power to go around but did not reach flying speed. The airplane drifted off to the left side of the runway and impacted the terrain.
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: 129 hours in all; 33 in this make and model; 35 in the last 90 days; 11 in the last 30 days; 103 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,336 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 15, 1997; 35 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,500 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1F (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BIL Billings MT at 11:40 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 32, 2,695 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 9,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:56 pm from BIL, 11 miles away
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.