- Date
- September 6, 1997, 09:02 local (13:02 UTC)
- Place
- Kenly, NC
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N6898FCessna 150F
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 4, 1998
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19970906025649A
- Case key
- 3901
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to see and avoid a utility line on final approach to land. The sunglare and utility line were factors.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
When the flight arrived at the private airstrip, the pilot circled the airstrip to assess the landing conditions. After the pilot selected the southeast sod runway, he established an approach for a full stop landing. The airplane collided with the utility line about 75 yards from the approach end of the 1600 foot long sod airstrip, and 50 feet above the ground. The pilot said the approach was into the sun and he did not see the utility line. The southeast runway was marked closed when the accident occurred.
Factual narrative
On September 6, 1997, at 0902 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 150F, N6898F, collided with a utility line while attempting an approach to land at a private airstrip in Kenly, North Carolina. The personal flight operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 with no flight plan filed. Visual weather conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The airplane sustained substantial damage, and the private pilot received minor injuries. The flight departed Wilson North Carolina, at 0835.
According to the pilot, he arrived at the private airstrip and circled the field to assess the landing conditions. After the pilot selected the southeast sod runway, he established an approach for a full stop landing. The pilot also stated that since he had not landed at the private airstrip recently, he was not aware of the utility line. The airplane collided with the utility line about 75 yards from the approach end of the 1600 foot long sod airstrip, and 50 feet above the ground.
No mechanical problems, with the airplane, were reported by the pilot. The pilot said the approach was into the sun and he did not see the utility line. The southeast runway was marked closed when the accident occurred.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6898F
- Reported as
- Cessna 150F
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 150-63498
- Airframe hours
- 2,350
- Engine
- Continental O-200-A, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Donnie Ray Boyette
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 31, 1997 · 2 hours before
- Departed
- NONE · Wilson, NC
- Destination
- NONE
- Airport
- NONE · Private Airstrip, runway 13, 1,800 × 100 ft, grass/turf
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 44
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 212 total · 106 in this make and model · 175 as pilot in command · 42 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 230° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RDU, 35 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.