# Accident 20000812040699A: Cessna 150, Carlsbad, CA, August 12, 2000

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 12, 2000, 11:30 local time
- Place: Carlsbad, CA
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Fcd/Prec Ldg From Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 33.1294° N, 117.3002° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.1294&lon=-117.3002&mi=10
- Aircraft: N6500T, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N6500T-2018-01-25) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 150 (registry code 2071802, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-150) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental 0-200 series (registry code 17020, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-200-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 150
- Reported engine: CONT O200A
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 19,094 total, 5,000 in this make and model, 204 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX00LA296](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX00LA296) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000812040699A

## Narrative

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

(.4) ON AUGUST 12, 2000, ABOUT 1130 HOURS PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME, A CESSNA 150, N6500T, DITCHED IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN ABOUT 20 MILES WEST OF CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, FOLLOWING A LOSS OF ENGINE POWER. THE AIRPLANE WAS OWNED AND OPERATED BY THE PILOT FOR FISH SPOTTING OPERATIONS UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 91 OF THE FEDERAL AVIATION REGULATIONS. THE AIRPLANE SANK AND IS PRESUMED TO BE DESTROYED. THE AIRLINE TRANSPORT PILOT, THE SOLE OCCUPANT, SUSTAINED MINOR INJURIES. WHILE VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE AIRCRAFT'S CRUISE ALTITUDE, INSTRUMENT CONDITIONS CONSISTING OF LOW STRATUS CLOUDS EXISTED AT THE SITE OF THE DITCHING. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM THE GILLESPIE FIELD AIRPORT, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, AT 1100 ON THE DAY OF THE ACCIDENT AND WAS EN ROUTE TO A FISHING AREA OFFSHORE. IN HIS WRITTEN REPORT, THE PILOT SAID THAT ABOUT 40 MILES OFFSHORE THE ENGINE RPM'S BEGAN A SLOW DECAY ACCOMPANIED BY A LOSS OF OIL PRESSURE AND AN INCREASE IN OIL TEMPERATURE. THE PILOT REVERSED COURSE AND HEADED TOWARD CARLSBAD, THE CLOSEST AIRPORT. ABOUT 20 MILES OUT FROM SHORE THE ENGINE LOST ALL POWER WITH A LOUD BANG AND THE PILOT DITCHED THE AIRPLANE AT 33 DEGREES 10 MINUTES NORTH LATITUDE BY 117 DEGREES 45 MINUTES WEST LONGITUDE. A PASSING FISHING BOAT PICKED UP THE PILOT. THE PILOT WAS UNABLE TO RECONSTRUCT THE MAINTENANCE HISTORY OF THE AIRCRAFT.

## 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 LAX00LA296](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX00LA296), Aug 12, 2000: Cessna 150 (N6500T), Carlsbad, CA, destroyed. Probable cause: A catastrophic internal engine failure for undetermined reasons.

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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