- Date
- November 17, 1990, 16:45 local (20:45 UTC)
- Place
- Atlantic Ocean (Atlantic Ocean)
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 2 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N51101Cessna 172P
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 23, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 32793
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
Delay of the pilot to obtain assistance and, as a result, he ditched the airplane near a boat due to a low fuel supply.
Analysis
The plt became lost. He circled a ship & due to a low fuel supply, ditched the acft. The plt & one passenger were not recovered. Two passengers were rescued by the ship. One of the passengers stated that the plt never informed them that he was lost but he was having compass problems & was frantically looking at charts. The acft was equipped with two VOR receivers & one adf. There were no NOTAMS listed for the VOR or NDB navigational aids at the destination arpt. The acft was equipped with a four man life raft & four life vests but one of the passengers inflated the life raft before ditching. He punctured it to regain space. The life vests were not located by the occupants.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N51101
- Reported as
- Cessna 172P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17274267
- Airframe hours
- 4,104
- Engine
- Lycoming O 320-D2J, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Hodge, Cleophas U.
- Registered owner
- Hodge, Cleophase U.
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 13, 1990 · 73 hours before
- Departed
- TUPJ · Beef Island, OF
- Destination
- TNCM · St. Maarten, OF
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 26
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 163 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 110° at 15 knots
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 82 °F, dew point 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- STT, 265 nm away