Cessna 172K accident near Shirley, New York, May 8, 1999
On May 8, 1999 at about 2:26 am local time, a Cessna 172K, registered N7068G, was destroyed in an accident near Shirley, New York (Brookhaven Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's loss of control of the airplane due to intoxication. A factor was the pilot's self-induced pressure to conduct the flight.
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 2:26 am local time
- Place
- Shirley, New York · Brookhaven Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172K · all 172Ks on the register
- Registration
- N7068G · no longer on the register · serial 17258768
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
On the night of the accident, the commercial pilot talked to his aunt by telephone, who then wanted to see him 'immediately.' He received a thorough weather briefing, and filed an instrument flight rules flight plan for the 1-hour flight. He then took off into a 200-foot overcast, with a visibility of 2 statute miles. The airplane crashed less than a mile from the airport. Toxicological testing revealed ethanol concentrations in the pilot's blood and vitreous fluid of 0.235 percent and 0.255 percent respectively.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,950 hours in all; 200 in this make and model; 382 in the last 90 days; 97 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,280 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, April 14, 1999; 92 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2H (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HWV at 2:26 am
- Destination: VAY Mount Holly NJ
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 120° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 200 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:50 am from ISP, 15 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.