Accident Summary
There were no eyewitnesses to the accident. According to the operator, the pilot rented the airplane to practice ground reference maneuvers in the south practice area. The weather was VMC, and other pilots flying in the vicinity reported no significant weather phenomena.
Pilot Information
Twelve months prior to the accident, at the pilot's third-class medical certificate renewal, he reported 480 total flight hours with no hours in the preceding six months. According to flight school records, he received about 2.7 hours of dual instruction and a biennial flight review after his medical. The pilot then flew solo through July 7, 1992, for about 8.7 hours.
Structural Failure Analysis
According to the metallurgist's factual report, the wings lower strut attach points failed due to overstress. Cessna Aircraft tested a 150K fuselage during certification work on the A152 model and found that the lower lift strut attach fitting failed at 8.28 G's. Engineers calculated that an airspeed of 153.2 mph was required at gross weight to generate the 8.28 G load which caused the strut attach failure. The maneuvering speed for the aircraft is 103 mph.