Cessna 172R accident near Cherokee, NC
On March 28, 2003, a Cessna 172R (airplane) was involved in an accident near Cherokee, NC. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- March 28, 2003
- Place
- Cherokee, NC
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172R · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 35.567°N, 83.491°W
- NTSB ID
- 20030402X00421
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On March 27, 2003, at 2035 eastern standard time, a Cessna 172R, N35255, registered to JC Flight Incorporated and operated by a private pilot, collided with mountainous terrain in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, near Cherokee, North Carolina. The personal flight was operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 with a visual flight plan filed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The airplane was destroyed and the pilot was fatally injured. The flight departed Columbia Metropolitan Airport, Columbia, South Carolina, at 1909. The pilot was receiving flight following from the Knoxville Downtown Airport Tower. The pilot requested the Automated Weather Observing System frequency and started his descent to the Knoxville Downtown Airport. At 2035, radio and radar contact was lost. At 2042, the airplane's emergency locator transmitter emergency signal was heard over the emergency frequency. Local authorities initiated a search for the missing airplane, and the downed airplane was located on March 28, 2003, at 1000. PERSONAL INFORMATION The pilot was issued a private pilot certificate on July 16, 2000, with ratings for airplane single engine land. Review of records revealed the pilot held a third-class medical certificate issued on May 9, 2001, with no restrictions. Review of the pilot logs revealed that the private pilot accumulated a total of 245 flight hours. AIRCRAFT INFORMATION The last recorded annual inspection was conducted on September 17, 2002; the total tachometer time was 1008.3. The altimeter system,
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate terrain clearance, which resulted in an in-flight collision with mountainous terrain.
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Browse: North Carolina · Cessna aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
