- Date
- June 28, 2007, 10:30 local (15:30 UTC)
- Place
- Salem, IL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N11419Cessna 150L
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 31, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20070628018859A
- Case key
- 66282
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 loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion which resulted in a forced landing. Additional causes were the certified flight instructor's inadequate preflight supervision. Factors contributing to the accident were the disorientation encountered by the pilot, the deteriorating visibility, and the tree encountered on landing.
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
The airplane was substantially damaged during a forced landing following a loss of engine power during cruise. The student pilot stated that she had been practicing maneuvers during a local solo flight for approximately two hours and decided to return to the airport to land. While she was returning to the airport, she became disoriented and "lost [her] way." She stated that she was looking for any airport to land at, "because the visibility was deteriorating." The student pilot reported that the airplane was "getting low on fuel," and the engine "suddenly" shut off and started again. The student pilot decided to find suitable off airport terrain to land. She reported that she landed on a "grass strip" which was the only place that she could find to land, and the airplane subsequently struck a tree and the nose gear collapsed. The pilot stated in her accident report that there was 11.5 gallons of fuel on board at the last takeoff. Examination of the airplane after the accident noted that about 15 total ounces of fuel were drained from the fuel strainer on the firewall, the right fuel tank, and the left fuel tank.
Factual narrative
The airplane was substantially damaged during a forced landing following a loss of engine power during cruise. The student pilot stated that she had been practicing maneuvers during a local solo flight for approximately two hours and decided to return to the airport to land. While she was returning to the airport, she became disoriented and "lost [her] way." She stated that that she was looking for any airport to land at, "because the visibility was deteriorating." The student pilot reported that the airplane was "getting low on fuel," and the engine "suddenly" shut off and started again. The student pilot decided to find suitable off airport terrain to land. She reported that she landed on a "grass strip" which was the only place that she could find to land, and the airplane subsequently struck a tree and the nose gear collapsed.
The pilot stated in her accident report that there was 11.5 gallons of fuel on board at the last takeoff. Examination of the airplane after the accident noted that about 15 total ounces of fuel were drained from the fuel strainer on the firewall, the right fuel tank, and the left fuel tank.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N11419
- Reported as
- Cessna 150L
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 15075406
- Airframe hours
- 10,608
- Engine
- Continental O-200-A, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Airgo Inc
- Registered owner
- Leslie Erb
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 1, 2007
- Departed
- ENL · Centralia, IL
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
- Student pilot
- Age
- 19
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 1, Unknown
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 21 total · 21 in this make and model · 4 as pilot in command · 21 in the last 90 days · 21 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.07 inHg
- Observed at
- SLO, 3 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.