What happened
On July 31, 2025, at approximately 1300 Alaska daylight time, a Cessna 150J, registration N60509, was involved in an accident near Soldotna, Alaska. The aircraft was being operated as a Part 91 instructional flight. The instructor pilot was conducting a local orientation flight for a visiting pilot, practicing short and soft field landing maneuvers.
Surveillance video from the Soldotna Airport (SXQ) showed the aircraft departing runway 7. As the plane flew at a level attitude and increased speed, it maintained an altitude of approximately 50 feet above ground level. As the aircraft approached the end of runway 7, it pitched up aggressively into a near-vertical climb reaching about 300 feet above ground level. At the apex of this climb, the aircraft rotated toward the left wing on its yaw axis. The airplane then descended in a near-vertical, nose-down attitude toward the west, shallowing its descent slightly just before impacting the surface of runway 25.
The accident resulted in one serious injury and one minor injury. The instructor pilot sustained minor injuries, while the pilot receiving instruction sustained serious injuries.