Mooney M20F accident near Cape Charles, Virginia, January 7, 1996
On January 7, 1996, a Mooney M20F, registered N9199V, was destroyed in an accident near Cape Charles, Virginia. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper in-flight planning/decision making by continuing flight into known adverse weather conditions. Related factors were the dark night and the winter storm (snow and fog).
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 7, 1996
- Place
- Cape Charles, Virginia · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20F · all M20Fs on the register
- Registration
- N9199V · no longer on the register · serial 690052
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was advised that VFR flight was not recommended. He contacted Norfolk Approach Control and requested permission to transition through their airspace. He indicated that he intended to fly south along the coast in an attempt to avoid the approaching winter storm. The airplane disappeared from radar/radio contact while over the Chesapeake Bay. Radar data revealed that the airplane was in a descending right turn from 2100 feet MSL until it disappeared from radar contact at 800 feet MSL. Search efforts located airplane parts along the beach, and located the main wreckage in the Chesapeake Bay. The wreckage has not been fully recovered. The pilot did not possess an instrument rating. It was a dark night with snow and fog.
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: 700 hours in all; 52 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 2,740 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
- Not recorded
The flight
- Departed from: GAI Gaithersburg MD
- Destination: FAY Fayetteville NC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 4,000 ft; scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 27°F (-3°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:50 pm from ORF, 25 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.