Cessna 172P accident near Dulce, New Mexico, April 8, 1999
On April 8, 1999 at about 4:59 am local time, a Cessna 172P, registered N96212, was substantially damaged in an accident near Dulce, New Mexico (Dulce Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot-in-command becoming disoriented during cruise flight, and his intentional flight into instrument meteorological conditions without proper certification. Factors were the existing weather conditions that included snow, fog, obscuration and icing, the dark night light conditions, the rough terrain condition on which to make a forced landing, and the closed runway.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 8, 1999 · about 4:59 am local time
- Place
- Dulce, New Mexico · Dulce Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172P · all 172Ps on the register
- Registration
- N96212 · no longer on the register · serial 17276041
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During the flight from Colorado Springs, Colorado, to Farmington, New Mexico, in which no flight plan was filed, the pilot and his pilot-rated passenger were unable to identify the mountains due to the dark night conditions. The pilot realized the VORs were inoperative, and that he was disoriented. He identified the city lights of Dulce, New Mexico, and decided to divert to the old airport, even though it was closed. The pilot began experiencing 'unusual attitudes and was beginning to feel the effects of vertigo,' as he began to encounter snow, fog, and partial obscuration. The aircraft's windshield had also become 'cake[d] with ice.' The controller advised the pilot of the airport's position. He was unable to identify the runway, but observed a police car's flashing light and made the decision to land. Upon landing, the aircraft veered to the left of the runway and impacted a ditch 70 yards from the runway centerline, then nosed over. During the pilot's weather briefings in Farmington and Colorado Springs, the pilot was advised of an AIRMET that had been issued for gusty winds with possible freezing rain and rime icing below 18,000 feet (FL 180), and moderate to severe turbulence en route.
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: 105 hours in all; 38 in this make and model; 41 in the last 90 days; 27 in the last 30 days; 39 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,637 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, April 2, 1999; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D2J (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: COS Colorado Spgs CO at 1:10 am
- Destination: FMN Farmington NM
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 15, 4,800 ft by 40 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
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.