- Date
- December 16, 1984, 11:15 local (19:15 UTC)
- Place
- Petaluma, CA
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N95337Cessna 152
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 24445
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 acft departed on a local primary dual instructional flt at about 1030 hrs. The student was in a pre-solo phase & the lesson was to consist of a review of high airwork. The instructor (CFI) had recently become interested in & was working on aerobatics. At about 1115 hrs, witnesses observed the acft perform a 'tight 3 turn right hand spin' with a recovery at about 500 ft AGL, then directly enter an 'airshow perfect loop.' No preimpact malfunctions of the acft systems were found. The cfi's blood/alcohol level was confirmed at 0.21%.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N95337
- Reported as
- Cessna 152
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 15285873
- Airframe hours
- 118
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-N2C, 108 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Vindar Aviation, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · November 30, 1984 · 19 hours before
- Departed
- 056 · Novato, CA
- Airport
- 056 · Gnoss Field
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
- 39
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 6,860 total · 3,010 in this make and model · 6,550 as pilot in command · 200 in the last 90 days · 70 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- APC, 10 nm away