Cessna 172M accident near Thermopolis, Wyoming, July 16, 2009
On July 16, 2009 at about 5:35 am local time, a Cessna 172M, registered N5461Q, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (descent) near Thermopolis, Wyoming. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The instructor pilot's failure to ensure that his dual student maintained clearance from the terrain during a dark night visual flight rules descent.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 16, 2009 · about 5:35 am local time
- Place
- Thermopolis, Wyoming · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172M · all 172Ms on the register
- Registration
- N5461Q · no longer on the register · serial 17261791
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot and his instructor were returning to their home airport after a visual flight rules (VFR) night cross-country instructional fight. During the last segment of the flight, as the student was descending toward the airport, the airplane's wheels contacted the terrain on a ridge about nine miles from the planned destination, and about 1,650 feet higher than the airport elevation. Although the airplane initially rolled across the terrain at a high rate of speed, it soon encountered the elevated edge of a dirt road. The contact with the road edge resulted in a loss of control of the airplane and further contact with the terrain. The sequence of events resulted in substantial damage to the airplane's fuselage. Although the sky was clear with no restrictions to visibility, it was a dark night with no moonlight, and neither pilot saw the terrain prior to the accident. Although the instructor pilot did not specifically remember an unusual rate of descent or any sense of the airplane sinking, it was his opinion that a "mountain wave downwash" may have contributed to the accident.
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
What happened, in order
- Controlled flight into terrain or object (CFIT) during enroute (descent) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Descent/approach/glide path › Incorrect use/operation
- Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring environment › Student pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring other person › Instructor/check pilot
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Light condition › Dark › Effect on personnel
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Downdraft › Effect on operation
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,784 hours in all; 1,800 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: minor injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 27 hours in all; 27 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 SERIES (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Round Top Flyers LLC
The flight
- Departed from: KLND Lander WY at 3:30 am
- Destination: KTHP Thermopolis WY
- Flight plan: not recorded
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 330° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | 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.