Cessna 150 accident near Castalia, NC
On December 16, 2017, a Cessna 150 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Castalia, NC. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- December 16, 2017
- Place
- Castalia, NC
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 36.087°N, 78.138°W
- NTSB ID
- 20171216X55947
Official records · ERA18LA048
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn December 16, 2017, at 1440 eastern standard time, a Cessna 150C, N7929Z, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain after takeoff from a farm field in Castalia, North Carolina. The commercial pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was owned and operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed in the area, and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight, which was destined for Triangle North Executive Airport (LHZ), Louisburg, North Carolina. The purpose of the flight was to recover the airplane from the field after a student pilot performed a precautionary landing there the previous day. The student reported that he had reduced engine power and airspeed after encountering turbulence; the engine subsequently became unresponsive to throttle inputs, and the student performed a successful landing to the field. The student pilot accompanied his father (who was an airline transport pilot), a mechanic, and the accident pilot (who was the owner of the airplane) to the field to retrieve the airplane. The accident pilot and the mechanic sampled the fuel, examined and test ran the engine, during which no anomalies were observed, and subsequently determined that the airplane was ready for flight. The field was oriented east/west and was about 1,000 ft long and 500 ft wide. The eastern and southern borders of the field were bisected diagonally by high-tension power lines that were oriented northeast/southwest, and an estimated 40 ft above the ground at their lowest poi
Probable cause
The pilot's exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack while performing a turning takeoff, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and loss of control. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's decision to attempt the takeoff, which he believed required a steep turn at a low altitude to avoid power lines.
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Browse: North Carolina · Cessna aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
