Cessna 150J N60676

Summary

On 12 January 2012 at about 04:45 local time, a Cessna 150J registered N60676, operated by Green Charles S III, was involved in an accident near Denmark, Wisconsin, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

12 January 2012 at 04:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Denmark, Wisconsin, United States

Coordinates

44.3394, -87.8209

Aircraft

Cessna 150J

Registration

N60676

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Green Charles S III

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Manitowoc → West Bend

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

CEN12LA133

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot’s loss of control due to his alcohol impairment. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's decision to fly at night with a known interior lighting malfunction.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During the flight before the accident flight, the airplane’s cockpit lighting failed and the pilot landed at an alternate airport. Later, a witness saw the pilot walking back to the airport with a 12-pack of beer, and said that the pilot explained that he was going to drink beer and sleep until morning in the airplane. However, the pilot fueled the airplane at a self-service fuel pump and departed for his home airport later that night. Witnesses near the accident site reported seeing an airplane maneuvering at a low altitude with the exterior lights turning on and off. During postaccident interviews, the pilot reported that he did not have interior lighting and was attempting to restore the airplane’s interior lighting by turning the exterior lighting on and off. He also stated that he was having difficulty maintaining control of the airplane. The pilot subsequently lost control of the airplane, which entered an unusual attitude and was not recovered before colliding with trees. Subsequent testing revealed that the pilot had a blood alcohol level of 0.138 g/100 ml. The legal limit for operating an airplane is 0.04 g/100 ml. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the bulb for the interior lighting had burned out.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.