# Accident 20230804019569A: Cessna 172M, St. Thomas, VI, August 4, 2023

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 4, 2023, 21:17 local time
- Place: St. Thomas, VI
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 18.3281° N, 65.1208° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=18.3281&lon=-65.1208&mi=10
- Aircraft: N13384, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N13384) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172M (registry code 2072418, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172m) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-320 series (registry code 41508, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172M
- Reported engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Other injuries: 0
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA23LA328](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA23LA328) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20230804019569A

## Narrative

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

ON AUGUST 4, 2023, AT AROUND 9:17PM LOCAL TIME, A CESSNA 172M, SERIAL NUMBER 17262719, WAS FLYING UNDER 14 CFR PART 91, ON AN INSTRUMENT FLIGHT PLAN FROM BQN TO STT.

AIRCRAFT WAS FUELED TO CAPACITY AT BQN. ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^DEPARTED BQN AIRPORT AT 7:33PM AST HEADING EAST THROUGH RTE2 (LOCAL INSTRUMENT AIRWAY). AT TOURO INTERSECTION, AIRCRAFT JOINED THE ILS RWY10 APPROACH. THE APPROACH WAS ENDED WITH A MISSED APPROACH. ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^THEN TURNED RIGHT TO A SOUTHERLY HEADING, AIRCRAFT THEN CONTINUED TO GRADUALLY TURN RIGHT UNTIL A WESTBOUND HEADING WAS ACHIEVED IN A STEADY CLIMB AT AROUND 95KTS GROUND SPEED. AT 09:14PM AST, AIRCRAFT STARTED A RIGHT TURN AND PERFORMED A RIGHT 540° WITH AN ESTIMATED DIAMETER OF 1.6 MILES REACHING A MAXIMUM PRESSURE ALTITUDE OF 6,450 FT. AT THAT TIME, THE AIRCRAFT APPEARS TO HAVE ENTERED A RIGHT SPIRALING DESCENT REACHING A MAXIMUM GROUND SPEED OF 156KTS AND A VERTICAL SPEED OF -9984 FT PER MINUTE (AS PER ADS-B DATA). AIRCRAFT STOPPED TRANSMITTING ADS-B-OUT DATA AT 4,600FT PRESSURE ALTITUDE WHILE INDICATING 147KTS GROUND SPEED. LAST KNOWN POSITION WAS 018:19:40.98 N, 065:07:12.85 W. AIRCRAFT IS PRESUMED TO HAVE CRASHED NINE MILES WEST OF ST. THOMAS, USVI WITH NO SURVIVORS. THERE WERE TWO OCCUPANTS ONBOARD.

FOR BLOCKS 21A AND 21B, THE TECHNICAL AND OPERATIONAL FACTORS, NONE IS SELECTED, SINCE THE AIRCRAFT AND OCCUPANTS ARE NOT FOUND.

FOR BLOCK 31, UNKNOWN IS SELECTED, SINCE THE INVESTIGATION DID NOT REVEAL IF PILOT ACTION(S) DID OR DID NOT CONTRIBUTE TO THE EVENT.

## 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 ERA23LA328](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA23LA328), Aug 4, 2023: Cessna 172 (N13384), Charlotte Amalie, CB, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The pilots’ loss of airplane control due to spatial disorientation. Contributing to the accident was both pilots’ lack of experience in operating in actual instrument meteorological conditions.

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.

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