Event
A Cessna 152, registration N93748, piloted by a student, was sequenced to land behind another aircraft, N97M, as a Beech 90 (N20) awaited takeoff. As N97M landed, N20 was cleared onto the runway to hold, and the student was cleared to land. Thirty-nine seconds later, N20 was cleared for takeoff. Shortly thereafter, N93748 stalled and crashed approximately 580 feet short of the runway.
Witness Accounts
Witnesses reported that the student flew from a close base leg to a short final approach, then executed two or three steep S-turns at low speed, as if attempting to increase separation behind N20. Witnesses also stated that N20 was holding on the runway when the student began the S-turns.
Communication and Training
Before takeoff, the pilot of N93748 informed ground control that she was a student. This information was not passed to the local controllers. The local controller was in training, and neither he nor his instructor was aware that the pilot was a student. The Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM) recommended student pilot identification on the initial call to a radio facility, but the ATC handbook did not require the information to be forwarded. The tower supervisor observed inadequate separation but took no action to correct it.
Aircraft Configuration
Following the accident, the flaps were found at 10 degrees. The student had been trained to use full flaps and to use S-turns on final for spacing, and to raise flaps fully up for a go-around. The Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH) recommended 20 degrees of flaps until a safe speed was obtained.