- Date
- January 10, 1987, 08:30 local (16:30 UTC)
- Place
- Palo Alto, CA
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N46354Cessna 152
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 21, 1988
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19870110000449A
- Case key
- 25499
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 student pilot stated that he had just finished practicing 4 touch-and-go with his flight instructor. The flight instructor then exited the aircraft and instructed the student to practice 5 solo touch-and-go. On the take-off run just prior to rotation, the passenger door opened. The student attempted to close the door when he lost control of the aircraft and ran off the runway colliding with the terrain and nosed over.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N46354
- Reported as
- Cessna 152
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 15283036
- Airframe hours
- 3,992
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-L2C, 110 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Sundowner Flying Club
- Registered owner
- Warden, Jim F.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · December 30, 1986 · 67 hours before
- Departed
- PAO · Palo Alto, CA
- Airport
- PAO · Palo Alto, runway 30, 2,500 × 65 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
- 20
- Certificate
- Student
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 18 total · 17 in this make and model · 1 as pilot in command · 18 in the last 90 days · 14 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PAO
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.