Overall Trends
Total, fatal, and serious accidents in the selected range.
Search investigations, review source evidence, monitor watched reports, and trace long-term patterns from one calm, data-first workspace.
Fast key and full-text search with live filters, watches, and precise metadata.
Use quotes for exact phrase matches (for example "fuel selector valve").
Track fatal and non-fatal accident patterns across Part 91, Part 135, and Part 121 operations.
Major cases, deep-report coverage, and investigation media across decades of NTSB history.
Move quickly by aircraft, airport, operator, and time with indexes built for research, not wandering.
NTSB Reports is an independent research and search tool for public aviation accident and incident records. It brings NTSB aviation reports, structured fields, docket files, extracted figures, photos, videos, and update history into one searchable interface.
The goal is practical safety education: make it faster to find relevant investigations, compare similar events, review factual records, and understand the evidence behind probable-cause and preliminary reports.
The investigative work and source records belong to the National Transportation Safety Board and the published investigation record. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NTSB.
Phoenix, AZ
The certified flight instructor (CFI) reported that he decided to complete the instructional lesson with his 25-hour student pilot after flying in the local area and performing three touch-and-go landings. The CFI indicated that he observed a dust devil near the airport while on base leg, but its proximity to the airplane's planned course did not look close enough to result in his aborting the approach and landing. The CFI stated he believed that if he hurried up he could land before the dust devil became a factor. After landing without mishap, the crew turned off the runway and the dust devil contacted the airplane. Control was lost control and the airplane nosed over.
The CFI's loss of airplane control upon encountering a dust devil due to his improper in-flight decision to land in proximity to the observed adverse weather conditions.
On January 21, 1999, at 1638 hours mountain standard time, a Cessna 152, N96640, operated by Westwind Aviation Academy, nosed over while taxiing from landing on runway 25R at the Deer Valley Municipal Airport, Phoenix, Arizona. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the instructional flight, and no flight plan was filed. The airplane was substantially damaged. Neither the commercial pilot, who was performing as a certified flight instructor, nor the student pilot was injured. The flight originated from the Deer Valley Municipal Airport about 1430. The flight instructor (CFI) reported that he decided to complete the instructional lesson after flying in the local area and performing three touch-and-go landings at the airport. The CFI indicated to the National Transportation Safety Board investigator that he observed a dust devil near the airport while on base leg, but its proximity to the airplane's planned course did not look close enough to result in his aborting the approach and landing. The CFI stated that he thought he could hurry up and land to get out of its way. The student pilot reported that they landed without mishap and turned off the runway. Then, the dust devil suddenly contacted the airplane and control was lost. During the mishap, both crewmembers were handling the flight controls. An on-duty Federal Aviation Administration air traffic controller observed the accident and reported that he had observed the dust devil moving in a southeasterly direction at a high rate of speed. The dust devil crossed directly over the airplane causing the tail to become airborne and completely flipping the airplane over.