# Accident 19990825047189A: Cessna 172N, Dyke, VA, August 25, 1999

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 25, 1999, 09:40 local time
- Place: Dyke, VA
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 38.2603° N, 78.5706° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.2603&lon=-78.5706&mi=10
- Aircraft: N733DH, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N733DH-2000-06-23) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172N (registry code 2072434, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172n) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172N
- Reported engine: LYC O320*
- People aboard: 4
- Fatal injuries: 4
- Pilot flight hours: 46 total, 15 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC99FA214](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC99FA214) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990825047189A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(.4)WHEN CHECKING OUT THE RENTAL AIRPLANE, THE PILOT TOLD THE DISPATCHER THAT THE CLOUDS ALONG HIS ROUTE WERE AT 3,100 FEET, THAT HE WOULD BE FLYING AT 2,500 FEET, AND THAT THE WEATHER AT HIS DESTINATION WAS CLEAR. HE THEN DEPARTED, THE FLIGHT ENCOUNTERED INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS AND THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED A 3,280-FOOT MOUNTAIN.  THE WRECKAGE WAS LOCATED ON A 30-DEGREE SLOPE, ABOUT 2,370 FEET ABOVE SEA LEVEL.  THE MOUNTAIN WAS PART OF A CHAIN, WITH MAXIMUM LOCAL ELEVATIONS RANGING FROM ABOUT 2,500 FEET TO OVER 3,200 FEET ABOVE SEA LEVEL. THE PILOT HAD RECEIVED HIS PRIVATE PILOT CERTIFICATION LESS THAN 3 WEEKS EARLIER AND WAS NOT INSTRUMENT RATED.         (-23)AIRCRAFT WAS FLIYNG FROM NEWPORT MEWS (PHF) TO SHENANDOAH  VALLEY (SHD) IN POOR WEATHER THAT WAS DETERIORATING.  THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED THE 3200FT FLAT TOP MOUNTAIN AT APPROX. 2300 FT IN LEVEL FLIGHT.  THE LEFT WING WAS TORN OFF BY A TREE THE AIRPLANE THEN ROLLED TO THE LEFT AND LOST THE NOSE GEAR AND RIGHT MAIN AGAINST ANOTHER TREE BEFORE IMPACTING THE FACE OF THE MOUNTAIN AT THE BASE OF A TREE AND BURNED.  THE PILOT AND HIS SON PLUS THE FEMALE PASSENGER AND HER DAUGHTER WERE KILLED.  WEATHER WAS IFR IN RAIN AT THE  SCENE.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB NYC99FA214](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC99FA214), Aug 25, 1999: Cessna 172N (N733DH), Dyke, VA, destroyed, 4 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's inadvertent flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in his inability to see the rapidly rising terrain. A factor was the pilot's inaccurate evaluation of the…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.