- Date
- April 10, 1997, 14:20 local (18:20 UTC)
- Place
- La Crosse, FL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N5442BCessna 152
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 2, 1998
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19970410010089A
- Case key
- 38259
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 student pilot's failure to maintain a visual look out on landing rollout resulting in an on-ground collision with a berm/furrow, and subsequent nose over. Contributing to the accident was the student pilot's improper fuel management resulting in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.
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 experienced a total loss of engine power in cruise flight. The pilot made a forced landing to an open field and collided with berm/furrow on landing rollout and nosed over inverted. Examination of the fuel system revealed to visible sign of odor of fuel.
Factual narrative
On April 10, 1997, about 1420 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 152, N5442B, registered to Marathon Flight School, Inc., operating as a 14 CFR Part 91 instructional flight, crashed during a forced landing in the vicinity of La Crosse, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and a VFR flight plan was filed. The student pilot was not injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The flight originated from Perry-Foley Airport, Perry, Florida, about 2 hours 5 minutes before the accident.
The student pilot was on a solo cross-country instructional flight to Gainesville, Florida, and had departed Perry with 12 gallons of fuel on board. During the cross-country flight she flew off course, became disoriented and did not request immediate assistance, and experienced a total loss of engine power. The pilot made a forced landing to an open field, collided with furrows/berm, and nosed over.
Examination of the aircraft fuel system revealed no visible signs or odor of fuel.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5442B
- Reported as
- Cessna 152
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 15283870
- Airframe hours
- 8,999
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-LZC(M), 125 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Marathon Flight School
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · April 4, 1997 · 14 hours before
- Departed
- 40J · Perry, FL
- Destination
- GNV · Gainesville, FL
- Flight plan
- VFR
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
- 36
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 53 total · 49 in this make and model · 15 as pilot in command · 39 in the last 90 days · 16 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 100° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 77 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- GNV, 20 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 N5442B · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.