- Date
- July 11, 1989, 18:42 local (23:42 UTC)
- Place
- Fort Worth, TX
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Standing
- Aircraft
- N17250Cessna 150L
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 22, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890711021879A
- Case key
- 22780
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
A loss of control of the airplane due to the pilot's inability to raise the flaps which resulted in a stall. The flap failure and subsequent full flap takeoff were the result of the operator's improper maintenance of the airplane and the operator's use of a custom checklist that deviated significantly from the manufacturer's approved checklist. Contributing to the accident were the pilot's failure to ensure that the flaps were fully retracted prior to takeoff, and the operator's inadequate initial training of the pilot.
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
Immediately after liftoff the newly-certificated pilot became aware that the flaps were full down. He was unable to raise them and the aircraft stalled while in a closed traffic pattern. An AGS-15 non-sloblo fuse was found to be blown. The flap down limit switch was out of adjustment resulting in the jackscrew traveling to the mechanical limit & eventually causing an electrical overload. The fuse was replaced twice within the previous 45 days. Four other aircraft of the operator's fleet also had incorrect fuses installed. The pilot had lowered the flaps for his walk-around. The operator (school) had developed their own checklist different from that contained in the approved owner's manual. This checklist called for lowering of flaps during pre-start inspection and raising of flaps during after-start. The checklist did not contain a specific entry to check that the flaps were up prior to takeoff.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N17250
- Reported as
- Cessna 150L
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 15073686
- Airframe hours
- 3,007
- Engine
- Continental O-200-A, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Pegasus Flight Center, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · June 24, 1989 · 42 hours before
- Departed
- FTW
- Destination
- FTW
- Airport
- FTW · Meacham, runway 27, 4,050 × 100 ft, asphalt
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
- 21
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 53 total · 48 in this make and model · 2 as pilot in command · 53 in the last 90 days · 18 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 170° at 11 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 25,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 90 °F, dew point 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- FTW
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.