Cessna 150L N10958

Summary

On 24 July 2007 at about 08:07 local time, a Cessna 150L registered N10958 was involved in an accident near Hammondsport, New York, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

24 July 2007 at 08:07

Classification

Accident

Location

Hammondsport, New York, United States

Coordinates

42.3928, -77.1894

Aircraft

Cessna 150L

Registration

N10958

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Jamestown → Ithaca

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

NYC07FA173

1 person died.

The pilot's inadequate in flight decision and failure to maintain aircraft control during cruise flight. Contributing to the accident were inadequate preflight planning, dark night and poor weather conditions.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The non-instrument rated pilot had accumulated 99 total hours of flight experience, with 50 of those hours having been logged 13 years prior to the accident. The pilot logged 3.2 total hours of flight experience at night, and his private pilot certificate was issued with a limitation prohibiting night flight. The accident flight was a 528 nautical mile cross-country trip, which began about 2000. The pilot departed from his first and second intended fuel stops at 2340 and 0300, respectively. An airmen's meteorological information (AIRMET) issued at 2245 warned of instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) and mountain obscuration along the latter segment of the intended route of flight. IMC was consistently reported at the planned final destination from the time of the initial departure until the accident. Witnesses reported that mist, rain, and darkness prevailed at the accident site at the time of the accident. Review of information extracted from a handheld global positioning system unit recovered from the wreckage revealed that the pilot entered a left 360-degree turn, followed by a descending right 360-degree turn, which continued until the airplane impacted terrain. The final flight path was consistent with an entry into IMC, and the subsequent loss of control due to spatial disorientation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.