Cessna 172S accident near Brooklyn, New York, May 21, 2005
On May 21, 2005 at about 5:32 pm local time, a Cessna 172S, registered N778LP, was substantially damaged in an accident near Brooklyn, New York. It was an instructional 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 maintain adequate airspeed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall and subsequent impact with terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 21, 2005 · about 5:32 pm local time
- Place
- Brooklyn, New York · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172S · all 172Ss on the register
- Registration
- N778LP · no longer on the register · serial 172S-8778
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
After departing on an instructional flight, the instructor and three passengers were fatally injured when the airplane impacted terrain while maneuvering along a beach. Radar data showed the accident flight at 300 feet and at a ground speed of 60 knots just prior to the accident. This was correlated by witness statements that the airplane was observed to be at a low altitude prior to descending in a nose down attitude and impacting the ground. No preimpact malfunctions of the airplane were discovered and the flaps were in the 30-degree position. A review of the accident flight's weight and balance information revealed that the flight was flown in an overweight condition. According to the manufacturer's information manual for the airplane, at the maximum certificated takeoff weight, an altitude loss during a stall recovery could be as much as 230 feet. At the 30-degree wing flap position, published stall speeds for the airplane ranged from 40 knots at 0 degrees of bank to 57 knots at 60 degrees of bank.
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: 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: 1,932 hours in all; 1,030 in this make and model; 39 in the last 90 days; 34 in the last 30 days; 1,609 as pilot in command; 1,240 on instruments
- Last flight review: August 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,940.8 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 2005; 55.3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Textron Lycoming IO-360-L2A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Air Fleet Training Systems Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: LDJ Linden NJ at 5:24 pm
- Destination: LDJ
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,500 ft
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.85 inHg
- Observation at 5:40 pm from JFK, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.