Cessna 172P accident near Fitchburg, Massachusetts, September 20, 1987
On September 20, 1987 at about 1:17 am local time, a Cessna 172P, registered N99151, was destroyed in an accident near Fitchburg, Massachusetts (Fitchburg Muni airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 20, 1987 · about 1:17 am local time
- Place
- Fitchburg, Massachusetts · Fitchburg Muni
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172P · all 172Ps on the register
- Registration
- N99151 · no longer on the register · serial 17276411
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DRG ARRIVAL, THE PLT WAS CLRD FOR AN NDB-A APCH TO FITCHBURG MUNI ARPT. THE NDB WAS LOCATED ON THE ARPT & THE ARPT ELEV WAS 350'. THE MIN DSCNT ALT (MDA) WAS 1140' MSL. THE APCH PROCEDURE WAS TO GO OUTBND FM THE NDB ON A 137 DEG BEARING, MAKE A PROCEDURE TURN, THEN TRACK INBND ON A FINAL APCH COURSE OF 317 DEG. THE MISSED APCH PROCEDURE WAS TO MAKE A CLIMBING RIGHT TURN TO 2500', DIRECT TO THE NDB, THEN HOLD. THE PLT BEGAN THE APCH & THOUGHT HE HAD PROCEEDED TO THE MISSED APCH POINT OVER THE ARPT WHEN THE ACDNT OCCURRED. HOWEVER, THE ACFT CRASHED IN THE SIDE OF A TREE COVERED HILL, APRX 2-1/2 MI SOUTHWEST OF THE ARPT, WHILE IN LVL FLT AT APRX 1150' MSL.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,000 hours in all; 3,000 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 40 in the last 30 days; 6,750 as pilot in command; 4,500 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 11,218 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 9, 1987; 218 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D2J (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Richmor Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: 5B2 Saratoga Spring NY
- Destination: FIT Fitchburg MA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 010° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast; not recorded
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Observation at 1:45 am from BED, 21 miles away
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.