Cessna 152 N49998

Summary

On 12 August 2002 at about 13:20 local time, a Cessna 152 registered N49998, operated by Silverhawk Aviation, was involved in an accident near Ithaca, Nebraska, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

12 August 2002 at 13:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Ithaca, Nebraska, United States

Coordinates

41.1431, -96.4464

Aircraft

Cessna 152

Registration

N49998

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Silverhawk Aviation

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Lincoln → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW02FA233

1 person died.

The pilot's intentional flight of the airplane into terrain in an act of suicide.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

During low level maneuvering, the airplane impacted corn stalks and terrain in a 30-degree nose down attitude. Witnesses stated the pilot rented the airplane for a local flight. One witness noticed the pilot had not preflighted the airplane, and then sat in the airplane for approximately 30 minutes prior to departure. According to recorded radar data, a target was depicted departing the airport area and proceeding to the north. The target had executed a series of turns between an altitude of 1,600 and 1,800 feet msl before disappearing. Examination of the airframe and engine revealed no anomalies that could have prevented normal flight operations. A local law enforcement official stated the pilot was the subject of an on-going criminal investigation. Numerous people who knew the pilot reported to the official that the pilot would kill himself by intentionally crashing an airplane before he would go to jail.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.