Cessna 172 accident near Hardy, AR
On December 26, 2021, a Cessna 172 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Hardy, AR. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- December 26, 2021
- Place
- Hardy, AR
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 36.346°N, 91.542°W
- NTSB ID
- 20211227104443
Official records · CEN22FA082
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- FAA ATC Package Excerpt: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn December 26, 2021, about 1729 central standard time, a Cessna 172E airplane, N5798T, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Hardy, Arkansas. The private pilot and passenger sustained fatal injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. A review of flight track data indicated that the airplane was airborne before it was visible on radar. The airplane first appeared about 13 nm north of the Walnut Ridge Regional Airport (ARG), Walnut Ridge, Arkansas, at 1627, at an altitude of about 2,500 ft. The airplane flew generally south toward ARG until track data was lost at about 1643, 3.5 nm north of ARG. The airplane’s track data reappeared at 1653, about 3 nm north of ARG, climbing from 2,800 ft. The airplane flew left and right several times in a back and forth “s-type" movement and then straightened out, flew west-north-west, and climbed to an altitude of about 4,500 ft, then descended lower in the latter part of the flight. While en route, the pilot contacted air traffic control and requested the weather at his destination airport along with the weather at additional airports. When queried, he stated he was over his destination airport. The pilot reported that he wanted to land because he had less than a quarter tank of fuel left, and he was going to continue flying west. The pilot then informed air traffic control that he was setting up to land at an alternate airport when radar contact was lost. At 1722, the airplane crossed over the Sharp County Regional Airport (CVK), Ash Flat, Arkans
Probable cause
The non-instrument rated pilot’s decision to continue visual flight into an area of instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in a loss of control due to spatial disorientation. Contributing to the accident was a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.
More accidents in AR
- Beech 65-A80, May 16, 2005
- Cessna 208B, Apr 28, 2001
- Piper PA-23-250, Nov 17, 2002
- Grumman G1159, Jan 19, 1990
- Piper PA-31-350, May 8, 2005
Browse: Arkansas · 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.
