Cessna A150L N6005J

Summary

On 2 February 1997 at about 16:40 local time, a Cessna A150L registered N6005J was involved in an accident near St. Mary's, Georgia, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

2 February 1997 at 16:40

Classification

Accident

Location

St. Mary's, Georgia, United States

Coordinates

30.7508, -81.5694

Aircraft

Cessna A150L

Registration

N6005J

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Not Reported

NTSB number

MIA97LA081

2 people were seriously injured.

the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed which resulted in an inadvertent stall the at too low an altitude to allow recovery. A factor in this accident was the pilot's attention was diverted.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot intended to photograph his son's house. He descended to an altitude of 1000 feet AGL, circled the house, and upon seeing people come out of the house and seeing them wave he took a couple of pictures. The pilot stated that he slowed the airplane down to 'flap operating speed...[and] put in 10 degrees of flap.' He then increased power, trimmed the airplane for level flight and 'essentially hands off' control. He stated that he circled twice, took two pictures, and 'then decided to drop...a tennis ball I had previously made up for the purpose...I tossed out the tennis ball. I then reached down for the camera in my lap and looked through the view finder, but was unable to frame the picture...I placed the camera back on my lap, and heard a cough/stutter from the engine and experienced a power loss...I employed carb (sic) heat and advanced the throttle...I seem to recall a slight forward movement when the power loss occurred and then I seem to recall sliding back away from the dash. Then I seem to have lost control. I remember trying to the keep the wings level and I watched the trees coming at me...' Ground witnesses saw the airplane maneuvering at a low altitude, turning, and going nose low into the trees. In addition, the witnesses told investigators that they heard the sound of the engine until impact. Examination of the engine and the airframe did not reveal any discrepancies.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.