As the saying goes : "Just because I'm paranoid, doesn't mean people are NOT
out to get me."

We know that eyewitnesses tend to say the engine sputtered, and news
reporters, when they hear the word "stall" they assume the engine quit. We
should not take this to mean the engine did not sputter and quit. Maybe it
did. At 500AGL, and well out of W/B limitations* it could quickly become a
difficult situation to manage.


*This is not to level unfair accusations, but I do not know how to put four
adults in a 172SP and any reasonable amount of fuel without being overweight
and aft loaded. Some contributors here are saying "full fuel" - I don't know
if that's known, factual information or conjecture, (or simply incorrect) but
if it's substantiated in some way then the plane is way out of limits.