History of Flight
On November 4, 2012, at about 1030 central standard time, a Cessna 150F, registration N8375G, impacted terrain on final approach to runway 32 at Quinn Field Airport (GTE) in Gothenburg, Nebraska. The aircraft was operated as a solo instructional flight under 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and the flight was not on a flight plan. The local flight had departed GTE at approximately 1000.
The student pilot had completed three landings without incident and was approaching for a fourth landing when the accident occurred. The pilot's flight instructor, who did not witness the accident, reported that the initial three landings appeared routine.
A pilot entering the traffic pattern observed the accident airplane land and stop within about 500 feet. The accident pilot then taxied back and took off. On the next circuit, the witness saw the accident airplane extremely low—not more than 200 feet above ground level (agl)—on the downwind leg, whereas the normal pattern altitude was 800 feet agl. The accident pilot subsequently landed and took off again. While on final approach, the witness observed the accident airplane on initial climb after takeoff beginning a crosswind turn. He then landed and taxied to his hangar and did not observe the remainder of the flight or the accident sequence. The airplane impacted an open grass area south of the runway and came to rest inverted.
Personnel Information
The pilot held a student pilot certificate and a third-class medical certificate issued on December 30, 2011. The medical certificate included a limitation for near vision corrective lenses and was limited to 12 months, not valid after December 31, 2012. A flight instructor endorsement for solo flight privileges dated November 3, 2012, was present on the certificate. According to the flight instructor, this was the student pilot’s second solo flight; the first had occurred the day before and consisted of one takeoff and landing. The student pilot had logged 13.7 hours total flight time with 42 landings. The prior solo flight was not included in the logbook.
Aircraft Information
The accident airplane was a Cessna 150F, serial number 15062475. It was a two-place, single-engine, high-wing airplane with fixed tricycle landing gear, powered by a 100-horsepower Continental Motors O-200-A engine (serial number 62233-5-A). The airplane received a utility category standard airworthiness certificate in November 1965. The current owner purchased the airplane on August 18, 2012.
Maintenance records show the most recent annual inspection was completed on December 10, 2011, at 3,248.1 hours total airframe time. Additional maintenance on March 12, 2012, at 3,255.27 hours included repair of the airbox and timing of the magnetos. The most recent maintenance, an engine oil change, was performed by the owner on October 5, 2012. No subsequent entries were recorded. The tachometer indicated 3,290.96 hours at the postaccident examination.
Meteorological Information
The nearest weather reporting facility was at Jim Kelly Field Airport (LXN), about 19 miles southeast of GTE. At 1035, the LXN Automated Weather Observing System reported wind from 270 degrees at 4 knots, visibility 10 miles, clear sky, temperature 9°C, dew point 3°C, and altimeter 30.07 inches of mercury.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The airplane struck an open grass area about 50 feet south of the runway 32 arrival threshold. It came to rest inverted on an approximate heading of 160 degrees magnetic. Ground impact marks were located about 22 feet south of the airplane, with a second impact scar about 7 feet farther south. The initial marks included a lateral impression consistent with a propeller slash and three depressions centered on it, consistent with landing gear contact.
The engine cowling was crushed upward and aft at about a 45-degree angle. The wings, aft fuselage, and empennage sustained impact damage. All flight control surfaces remained attached, and continuity was confirmed from each surface to the cockpit controls. The wing flaps were positioned at about 30 degrees deflection. A postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no anomalies consistent with a preimpact failure or malfunction.
Medical and Pathological Information
An autopsy conducted at the Nebraska Institute of Forensic Science on November 5, 2012, attributed the pilot’s death to blunt force trauma. The FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute toxicology report was negative for all drugs in the screening profile; no ethanol was detected in vitreous fluid, and no carbon monoxide was detected in a blood sample.