Cessna 172M accident near Girdwood, Alaska, November 8, 2008
On November 8, 2008 at about 8:49 pm local time, a Cessna 172M, registered N9099H, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near Girdwood, Alaska (Girdwood airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's decision to attempt to take off on a snow-covered runway. Contributing to the accident was the snow-covered runway.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 8, 2008 · about 8:49 pm local time
- Place
- Girdwood, Alaska · Girdwood · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172M · all 172Ms on the register
- Registration
- N9099H · no longer on the register · serial 17265943
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor was on an instructional flight with a student pilot and decided to land at a different airport prior to returning to the departure airport. He said that while above the airport where he intended to land he received a report from another pilot that there were 4-5 inches of snow on the runway. He made a successful soft-field landing and taxied back to the threshold to demonstrate a soft-field takeoff. The pilot said the airplane accelerated slowly on takeoff, and did not reach rotation speed before running through the runway end markers. He said the airplane continued down an embankment and came to rest in a creek. He said there were no known mechanical problems with the airplane prior to the accident and that the airplane sustained damage to the wings and fuselage. In a written statement, the pilot wrote that the accident could have been avoided by not landing on a runway with more than an inch of snow.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Miscellaneous/other during takeoff
- Runway excursion during takeoff defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Instructor/check pilot
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Runway/land/takeoff/taxi surfa › Snow/slush/ice covered › Decision related to condition
- factor Environmental issues › Physical environment › Runway/land/takeoff/taxi surfa › Snow/slush/ice covered › Effect on operation
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 413 hours in all; 157 in this make and model; 154 in the last 90 days; 58 in the last 30 days; 380 as pilot in command; 165 on instruments
- Last flight review: July 23, 2008
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 SERIES (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Aero Tech Flight Service INC
The flight
- Departed from: AQY Girdwood AK at 8:49 pm
- Destination: MRI Merrill Field AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 19, 2,088 ft by 73 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Temperature: 19°F (-7°C), dew point 18°F (-8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.92 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.