# Accident 19970816022529A: Cessna 150L, Westfield, MA, August 16, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 16, 1997, 13:05 local time
- Place: Westfield, MA
- Airport: Barnes Municipal
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: To Init Climb(1st Pwr Reduct)
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 42.1251° N, 72.7495° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Westfield, MA, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.1251&lon=-72.7495&mi=10
- Aircraft: N16040, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N16040-2002-05-30) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 150L (registry code 2071826, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-150l) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental 0-200 series (registry code 17020, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-200-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 150L
- Reported engine: CONT O200A
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 255 total, 30 in this make and model, 4 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB IAD97LA111](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD97LA111) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970816022529A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

AIRCRAFT CRASHED IMMEDIATELY AFTER TAKEOFF INTO A CORN FIELD AT END OF RUNWAY.  (.4)THE PILOT DEPARTED WITH A PASSENGER AND FULL FUEL.  A WITNESS OBSERVED THE ACCIDENT AIRPLANE TAKEOFF AND ROTATED TO A "VERY HIGH PITCH ATTUTIDE."  THE AIRPLANE'S PITCH LOWERED A LITTLE, FOLLOWED BY THE LEFT WING, AND THEN THE AIRPLANE DESCENDED AND LANDED NOSE FIRST IN A CORNFIELD NEXT TO THE RUNWAY.  THE PILOT STATED THAT HE HAD NOT COMPLETED WEIGHT AND BALANCE COMPUTATIONS.  WEIGHT AND BALANCE CALCULATIONS INDICATED THAT THE AIRPLANE HAD BEEN LOADED ABOVE ITS MAXIMUM GROSS WEIGHT LIMIT OF 1,600 POUNDS BY 156 POUNDS.  EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE DID NOT DISCLOSE ANY EVIDENCE OF MACHANICAL MALFUNCTION WITH THE AIRPLANE OR THE ENGINE.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB IAD97LA111](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD97LA111), Aug 16, 1997: Cessna 150L (N16040), Westfield, MA, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inadequate preflight preparation which fail to include a weight and balance check and his subsequent failure to maintain aircraft control.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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