Cessna 172N accident near Dyke, Virginia, August 25, 1999
On August 25, 1999 at about 1:40 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N733DH, was destroyed in an accident near Dyke, Virginia. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadvertent flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in his inability to see the rapidly rising terrain. A factor was the pilot's inaccurate evaluation of the weather.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 25, 1999 · about 1:40 pm local time
- Place
- Dyke, Virginia · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N733DH · no longer on the register · serial 17268211
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
When checking out the rental airplane, the pilot told the dispatcher that the clouds along his route were at 3,100 feet, that he would be flying at 2,500 feet, and that the weather at his destination was clear. He then departed, the flight encountered instrument meteorological conditions and the airplane impacted a 3,280-foot mountain. The wreckage was located on a 30-degree slope, about 2,370 feet above sea level. The mountain was part of a chain, with maximum local elevations ranging from about 2,500 feet to over 3,200 feet above sea level. The pilot had received his private pilot certification less than 3 weeks earlier and was not instrument rated.
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: 46 hours in all; 3 in this make and model; 15 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,915 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 13, 1999; 165 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: PHF Newport News VA at 12:35 pm
- Destination: SHD Weyers Cave VA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,100 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 pm from CHO, 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.