Cessna 150F N8903S

Summary

On 8 November 2005 at about 22:54 local time, a Cessna 150F registered N8903S was involved in an accident near Mesa, Arizona, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

8 November 2005 at 22:54

Classification

Accident

Location

Mesa, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Falcon Field (FFZ)

Coordinates

33.4303, -111.7109

Aircraft

Cessna 150F

Registration

N8903S

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Mesa → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX06LA029

2 people had minor injuries.

the failure of the flap motor fuse that rendered the flaps inoperable during a critical phase of flight. Factors in the accident were the lack of suitable terrain to perform an emergency landing and the owner's use of nonapproved fuses for the flap motor circuit.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane landed hard after the flaps failed to retract in the initial climb following a touch-and-go takeoff. The Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) and the student pilot, who is also the owner of the airplane, performed several maneuvers prior to returning to the airport to practice touch-and-go takeoffs and landings. The student was flying the airplane throughout the entire landing portion of the touch-and-go until rotation. When the airplane rotated, it pitched up steeply and the CFI took control of the airplane. The CFI realized the flaps would not retract and tried to maintain control of the airplane while the student attempted to change the fuse for the flap motor. The CFI noticed obstructions in their flight path and elected to land in a parking lot. Due to the size of the parking lot, the instructor had to make an intentional hard touchdown to avoid colliding with fencing surrounding the lot. The owner had replaced the fuse for the flap motor several weeks prior to the accident. The original fuse was lost during recovery. During post examination of the wreckage a serviceable fuse was installed for the flap motor. The flap motor operated the right wing flap with no abnormalities noted. A package of fuses other than the manufacturer's recommended fuse type was found in the glove compartment of the airplane.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.