Piper PA-24-180 accident near Vicksburg, Mississippi, May 8, 1999
On May 8, 1999 at about 3:30 am local time, a Piper PA-24-180, registered N5900P, was substantially damaged in an accident near Vicksburg, Mississippi (Vicksburg Municipal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to obtain and maintain flying speed that resulted in an inadvertent stall, and the collision with trees. A factor is the dark night.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 8, 1999 · about 3:30 am local time
- Place
- Vicksburg, Mississippi · Vicksburg Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-24-180 · all PA-24-180s on the register
- Registration
- N5900P · no longer on the register · serial 24-985
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
At 2215, the pilot and his three passengers arrive at the airport and board the airplane. A witness stated that he waved at the airplane as it took off. According to the police report, a few minutes after takeoff, the witness at the airport received a telephone call that reported a downed airplane near Warrenton Lane. Reportedly, this information was not relayed to the local emergency services. The following morning friends of the pilot and passengers began inquiring at the about the location of their friends. Airport personnel contacted the local police and the airplane was found about 1.1 miles off the departure end of runway 01, in a heavily wooded area. Examination of the wreckage found that the airplane had impacted the ground in a 55-degree nose down attitude after striking a tree with the left wing. The airplane came to rest upright on a heading of 090 degrees. No mechanical problems were discovered during the examination of the wreckage.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 71 hours in all; 4 in this make and model; 22 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 31 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,744 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 1, 1999; 12 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: VKS MS at 3:30 am
- Destination: 2F8 Bastrop LA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 19, 5,000 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 am from TVR, 8 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 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.