Cessna 172S accident near Price, Utah, June 27, 2011
On June 27, 2011 at about 1:40 pm local time, a Cessna 172S, registered N674SP, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near Price, Utah (Price Carbon County airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's decision to attempt a takeoff at a density altitude outside of the takeoff performance envelope of the aircraft along with using an aircraft flap setting higher than the manufacture's recommended setting for takeoff.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 27, 2011 · about 1:40 pm local time
- Place
- Price, Utah · Price Carbon County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172S · all 172Ss on the register
- Registration
- N674SP · no longer on the register · serial 172S8087
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot took off for a training flight to a dirt strip approximately 50 miles to the east. Upon landing at the strip the pilot decided to initiate a short/soft field take off down the 3,600-foot-long runway. The pilot reported that he took off with 20 degrees of flaps and was never able to get more than 10 feet off the runway surface area. At the end of the runway the pilot noticed two 3-4 foot high dirt berms. He pulled back on the yoke, missing the first berm, but the airplane settled back down and struck the second one. The resulting impact caused the aircraft to nose over and come to a rest inverted. The airplane's pilot operating handbook (POH) states that soft or rough field takeoffs should be performed with no more than 10 degrees of flaps. Furthermore the airport's density altitude at the time of the accident was calculated to be approximately 10,000 feet, which is 2,000 feet above the maximum altitude listed in the takeoff performance charts in the POH. The pilot reported no mechanical issues with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
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
- Preflight or dispatch event during prior to flight
- Collision during takeoff/land during takeoff defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Incorrect action selection › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft structures › Wing structure › Trailing edge flaps › Incorrect use/operation
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Temp/humidity/pressure › High density altitude › Effect on operation
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Aircraft capability › Climb capability › Capability exceeded
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,157 hours in all; 318 in this make and model; 70 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 1,029 as pilot in command; 775 on instruments
- Last flight review: August 15, 2009
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, February 1, 2011; 27 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 SER (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Arrow West Aviation INC
The flight
- Departed from: KPUC Price UT
- Destination: KPUC Price UT
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.97 inHg
- Observation at 11:40 am from kpuc, 55 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.