# NTSB WPR21LA012: Cessna 150, N22963, Bishop, CA, October 11, 2020

- Type: NTSB accident investigation
- Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Class 4 · Limited · Final report
- Date: October 11, 2020, 14:30 local (21:30 UTC)
- Place: Bishop, CA
- Coordinates: 37.3409, -118.3571
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=37.3409&lon=-118.3571&mi=10
- Phase of flight: [Approach](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/500) (OpenAirDocs' grouping)
- Defining event: [Approach: Fuel starvation](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/191)
- Highest injury: Minor injuries
- Injuries: 1 minor
- Status: Completed
- Report: Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class: Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office: Western Pacific Region
- NTSB case key (mKey): 102128
- NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=WPR21LA012
- NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/102128/pdf
- NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=102128
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR21LA012

## Probable cause

A loss of engine power due to the pilot’s inadvertent closure of the mixture control which starved the engine of fuel and resulted in a hard landing and collision with terrain.

## Findings

NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause.

- [Use of equip/info: use of equip/system](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063015): Personnel issues › Task performance · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Cessna 150H, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063015/cases.md?model=2071818), [All aircraft, 1,391 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063015/cases.md)
- [Fluids: fuel](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01071010): Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware · Incorrect use/operation (probable cause); cases with it: [Cessna 150H, 5 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01071010/cases.md?model=2071818), [All aircraft, 1,695 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01071010/cases.md)

## Sequence of events

The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened.

- [Approach: Fuel starvation](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/191) (defining event); cases with it: [Cessna 150H, 4 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/191/sequence.md?model=2071818), [All aircraft, 733 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/191/sequence.md)

## Analysis

The pilot reported that, while on final approach he was high, so he reduced power, extended 10o of flaps and entered a slip while he applied carburetor heat. Shortly thereafter the engine lost power. The pilot unsuccessfully attempted an engine restart. The pilot then made a turn to an aera that he thought was suitable for landing. The airplane landed hard and subsequently came to rest inverted, substantially damaging the vertical stabilizer and horizontal stabilizer. The pilot reported that he mistakenly pulled the mixture control rather than carburetor heat. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

## Aircraft

- Registration: [N22963](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N22963), registered now, S/N 15068646 (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 150 (H)
- Registry model: [Cessna 150H](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-150h) (registry code 2071818) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: [Continental 0-200 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-200-series) (registry code 17020, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs)
- Category: Airplane
- Serial number: 15068646
- Year built: 1968
- Engines: Continental O-200 100 hp reciprocating
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Flight: Part 91
- Registered owner: Dk Futures LLC
- Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal
- Last inspection: Annual, October 1, 2020, 1.5 hours before
- Departed: KBIH, Bishop, CA
- Destination: Same as departure
- Airport: BIH, Bishop, runway 35, 5,600 × 100 ft, asphalt

## Weather

- Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day
- Wind: 270° at 7 knots, gusting 16
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Altimeter: 30.08 inHg
- Observed at: KBIH, 2.5 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 (OpenAirDocs).

- [Accident 20201011020219A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20201011020219A), Oct 11, 2020: Cessna 150H, Bishop, CA, Substantial damage. After a VFR flight, the pilot entered a wide left base and turned for a long final approach. He reduced the power and selected 10 degrees of flap and began a…

## Docket (2 files)

The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 20, 2021, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=102128. 3.5 MB in all.

- Pilot/operator aircraft accident report, NTSB form 6120.1 (item 1, PDF, 9 pages, 3.3 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=12584406&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=WPR21LA012%20Pilot%20Report_Redacted-Rel.pdf
- Photo (source unknown) (item 2, PDF, 1 page, 168 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=12583599&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=WPR21LA012%20Damage%20Photo%20source%20Unknown-Rel-Rel.pdf

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

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