Cessna 152 accident near Petaluma, CA

On January 5, 2002, a Cessna 152 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Petaluma, CA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.

Date

January 5, 2002

Place

Petaluma, CA

Aircraft

Cessna 152 · Airplane

Injuries

1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor

Damage

Destroyed

Position

38.229°N, 122.560°W

NTSB ID

20020108X00048

Official records · LAX02FA059

• Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation

NTSB summary

HISTORY OF FLIGHT On January 4, 2002, at 2158 Pacific Standard Time, a Cessna 152, N24223, impacted mountainous terrain shortly after takeoff from the Petaluma, California airport. The student-certificated pilot, the sole occupant, was fatally injured and the airplane was destroyed. The local area (personal/instructional) flight was operated by Aero Venture. Nighttime, visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The pilot was a student at the Aero Venture flight school at the Petaluma airport where he was training for his private pilot certificate. The owner of the school told the Safety Board investigator that the pilot had not been scheduled or authorized by the school to fly that night. He was not qualified in the accident airplane type and was not qualified or endorsed to fly solo at night. The flight school owner said that the pilot came to them to learn to fly with no prior flying training. At the time of the accident he had acquired about 95 hours total time, of which 25 hours were solo. He had about 4 hours of (dual instruction) night flight time, which included a night cross-country to Sacramento. He said that the pilot had never displayed any unsatisfactory behavior with respect to his flight training or he wouldn't have been allowed to continue. He was in the final stages of preparation for his private pilot checkride, which was scheduled for the latter part of January. His flight instructor said he had known the pilot, as a flight student, for about a year and considered him a little more than an acquaintance. He had had the student

Probable cause

The pilot's intentional flight of the airplane into terrain in an act of suicide.

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Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.