- Date
- September 9, 1990, 18:22 local (Sep 10, 1990, 01:22 UTC)
- Place
- Tucson, AZ
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N4649ACessna A152
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report April 13, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900909039009A
- Case key
- 26656
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
Failure of the pilot to recover from a spin. Factors related to the accident were: the pilot's failure to assure there was adequate altitude to recover from an inadvertent or intentional spin, and his lack of recent expereince in the type of operation.
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 218 hour private pilot and a friend departed the airport in an aerobatic Cessna A152 with parachutes. They proceeded to the west practice area where radar recorded the aircraft maneuvering. They failed to return to the airport. The aircraft was located two days later in the west practice area. An exam revealed it had impacted the ground in about a 75 degree nose down attitude. There was evidence the aircraft was rotating about the vertical axis when it impacted the ground. No preimpact part failure or malfunction of the aircraft or engine was found during the investigation. The pilot had previously received about 15 hours of aerobatic instruction in a Bellanca 7GCA and less than an hour in a Cessna 152. No record was found that he had performed aerobatic flight since he had completed the training about 4 months before the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4649A
- Reported as
- Cessna A152
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- A2630854
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-L2C, 110 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Double Eagle Aviation Inc.
- Registered owner
- George Gregory, Jr.
- Departed
- TUC · Tucson, AZ
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
- 31
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 218 total · 101 in this make and model · 167 as pilot in command · 22 in the last 90 days · 13 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 330° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -0 °F, dew point -0 °F
- Observed at
- RYN, 5 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.
Other investigations on N4649A · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.