Cessna 172N accident near Pacoima, California, December 29, 2013
On December 29, 2013 at about 8:53 pm local time, a 1979 Cessna 172N, registered N4936D, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering near Pacoima, California (Whiteman airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor’s inadequate compensation for the gusting crosswind conditions during landing, which resulted in a loss of airplane control.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 29, 2013 · about 8:53 pm local time
- Place
- Pacoima, California · Whiteman · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N, built 1979 · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N4936D · no longer on the register · serial 17272405
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The private pilot and the flight instructor were conducting a local instructional flight. The pilot reported that, due to high wind, the flight instructor took the controls during the landing. He added that, as the airplane touched down, it encountered a wind gust and then became airborne. The flight instructor applied power in an attempt to crab into the wind and avoid colliding with the air traffic control tower. The airplane then encountered another wind gust, ascended to about 50 ft, continued to drift left of the runway, and then rolled. The flight instructor was unable to maintain control, and the airplane subsequently descended and collided with power transmission lines, impacted a building, and came to rest in a nearby parking lot. The reported wind at the airport about the time of the accident was a 22-knot crosswind gusting up to 26 knots. The pilots reported no mechanical malfunctions or failures 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
- Other weather encounter during landing (aborted after touchdown)
- Loss of control in flight during maneuvering defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during maneuvering
The NTSB's findings
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Gusts › Response/compensation
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Crosswind › Ability to respond/compensate
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Instructor/check pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › (general) › Not attained/maintained
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Wire › Contributed to outcome
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Residence/building › Contributed to outcome
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 878 hours in all; 799 in this make and model; 280 in the last 90 days; 84 in the last 30 days; 817 as pilot in command; 423 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: minor injuries
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 140.8 hours in all; 110.5 in this make and model; 89.3 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: February 18, 2006
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 13,100 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 29, 2013
- Maximum gross weight: 2,299 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320H SERIES (piston); 13,100 hours total
- Operator: Vista Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: WHP Pacoima CA at 8:00 pm
- Destination: WHP Pacoima CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 30, 4,120 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 350° at 20 knots, gusting 30
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 1°F (-17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.05 inHg
- Observation at 9:47 pm from WHP
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.