- Date
- July 13, 1990, 14:30 local (21:30 UTC)
- Place
- Santa Catalina, CA
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N1398QCessna 150
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 9, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900713025679A
- Case key
- 26867
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 engine failure due to carburetor ice and the pilots improper use of carburetor heat.
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 pilot stated he had been fish spotting at 1000 feet (MSL) when the engine suddenly quit. He was able to get a restart but only with partial power. He was unable to maintain altitude and ditched into the ocean. The pilot calculated approximately 40 gallons of automotive fuel remaining. The temperature/dew point of the closest official reporting station was 87 and 64 degrees respectively. According to the icing probability chart. The temperature/dew point spread corresponds to a point on the chart within the 'serious icing glide power' range.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1398Q
- Reported as
- Cessna 150
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 15072698
- Engine
- Continental O-200-A, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial observation · Part 91
- Operator
- Flores, Steven B.
- Registered owner
- Unknown
- Departed
- L9B · Long Beach, CA
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
- 30
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 1,631 total · 1,390 in this make and model · 1,574 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -0 °F, dew point -0 °F
- Observed at
- LGB
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.