Cessna172

At about 17:00 mountain time, a Cessna 172 crashed into terrain while in cruise flight near Lindsay. The pilot, who was seriously injured, had opened a VFR flight plan about 35 minutes earlier. The aircraft was in cruise flight at 300 feet agl when the pilot was distracted by tuning a radio….

At 18:16 eastern time, a Cessna 172S was destroyed by an explosion and fire after the pilot shut down the engine on the taxiway at Leesburg Executive Airport. The pilot was seriously injured. The pilot said he was flying to a nearby airport to pick up a passenger and return. The aircraft had been loaded for a departure the next day to make a fishing trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The airplane was loaded with fishing gear, camping gear and 15 gallons of 100LL avgas in four, five-gallon cans. The fuel cans and the gear were secured under a cargo net in the airplane two days prior to the accident. The pilot said he taxied to the runup area and got an overwhelming fuel smell. He shut…

At 08:28 eastern time a Cessna 172N flipped inverted while taxiing after landing at Sarasota Bradenton International Airport. The pilot was not injured. The airplane had just arrived on an IFR flight from Atlanta, Ga., and landed on runway 32. While taxiing after landing, a gust of wind flipped the airplane. Winds were reported at 340 at 45 knots, gusting to 60….

At about 07:45 mountain time, a Cessna 172L crashed into a house and burned in Tucson, killing the pilot. The flight had taken off from La Cholla Airpark, a private residential airport, in violation of flight restrictions against VFR flight. The airplane was detected by Tucson Approach and the controller transmitted in the blind, telling the pilot to return to the point of origin. The pilot did not respond but the airplane reversed course and the transponder code changed from 1233 to 1203. About six miles south of the departure airport, the airplane crashed into the house….

At about 19:50 eastern time, a Cessna 172M lost electrical power near Trenton and crashed in the ensuing forced landing. The pilot and two passengers suffered minor injuries. The pilot said he was in cruise flight when the electrical equipment began to fail. He checked the voltmeter and saw the red light was not illuminated. The voltmeter needle was slightly off the middle scale. He flew about 30 to 40 minutes while trying to locate an airport. A passenger called 911 on a cell phone to get assistance. The pilot spotted an open field and made a forced landing, but on the landing rollout the airplane struck a dirt mound….

At about 1750 Pacific time, a Cessna 172N nosed over during a precautionary landing about 11 miles east of Madera. The private pilot was not injured. The pilot said he had been flying more than an hour when he became uncertain about his location and noticed it was getting foggy. He decided to make a precautionary landing. The pilot landed on a 650- to 700-foot airstrip used for radio-controlled airplanes. The airplane overran the strip and struck a berm. Responding law enforcement officers reported there was no fog in the area and that visibility was unrestricted. Other nearby airports reported clear skies and visibility of 10 miles. The accident happened right at sunset….

At 1730 central time, a Cessna 172P crashed while trying to land at Ferguson Airport. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot reportedly attempted several approaches to runway 18 without landing, then stalled over the runway on his final attempt. Winds at the time were reported from 330 degrees at 12 knots….

At 17:03 eastern time, a Cessna 172R was crashed into the side of the Bank of America Building, killing the student pilot. The student was instructed to preflight the airplane and wait for the instructor, but instead the student took off without clearance from the tower. The airplane flew over the control tower and three hangars at McDill Air Force Base before proceeding downtown. An unarmed Coast Guard helicopter intercepted the airplane and attempted to get the pilot to land. The helicopter pilots said they believed the student pilot saw their hand gestures and gestured back, however they could not determine what kind of gestures the student pilot was making. Shortly thereafter, the airpla…

At approximately 11:30 mountain time, a Cessna 172N struck rising terrain while maneuvering near Durango. The pilot was not injured but two passengers sustained serious injuries. The pilot said he and two friends were on a local sightseeing flight when the pilot executed a left turn to a normally okay route. However, he entered a canyon he could not exit due to rising terrain. The pilot decided to execute a forced landing to a clearing, where the airplane struck trees and terrain….

At 14:50 central time, a Cessna 172 overran the runway at Iraan Municipal Airport. The pilot was not injured. The pilot said he had difficulty locating the windsock and then made three approaches to runway 32. On the third try, he touched down about a third of the way down the runway and could not stop, crashing through a fence, across a ditch and into a business yard. The pilot then determined he had landed with a 15-knot tailwind….