- Date
- November 8, 1991, 00:09 local (05:09 UTC)
- Place
- Okeechobee, FL
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N739WSCessna 172N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report August 28, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19911108049959A
- Case key
- 32998
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.
The pilot-in-command's failure to maintain altitude during a low pass at night. Contributing factors were the pilot's likely spatial disorientation due to the lack of surface visual clues, the dark night conditions, and the patchy fog conditions.
Analysis
The flight was conducting an aerial reconnaissance looking for 2 missing fishermen on lake Okeechobee. While descending to 125 ft AGL, a boat was spotted off the left wing. The airplane turned towards the boat descending with the landing light on. While overflying the boat, the landing light was turned off and then back on. The pilot later stated the light illuminated what appeared to be haze, with no visual sighting of the water. The airplane then collided with the water and nosed over. Witnesses stated that the night was very dark with patchy ground fog.
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
- N739WS
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17270870
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320 H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Public aircraft · Public use
- Operator
- Okeechobee Co Sheriff'S Office
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
- 53
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 4,479 total · 1,395 in this make and model · 4,479 as pilot in command · 28 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 300° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 25,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 70 °F, dew point 68 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.89 inHg
- Observed at
- PBI, 35 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.