Cessna 150L accident near Anchorage, Alaska, August 24, 2013
On August 24, 2013 at about 11:36 pm local time, a Cessna 150L, registered N18699, was substantially damaged in an accident during approach (VFR go-around) near Anchorage, Alaska (Merrill Field Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as a result of a low fuel state and a nose-high attitude during a go-around, which unported the fuel tank feed line, and the pilot's decision to make a low-altitude turn back to the airport, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and loss of control.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 24, 2013 · about 11:36 pm local time
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · Merrill Field Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150L · all 150Ls on the register
- Registration
- N18699 · no longer on the register · serial 15074051
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The accident airplane was number two to land behind another airplane that was on final approach to the same runway. As the accident airplane neared the runway threshold, the air traffic control tower (ATCT) controller instructed the accident pilot to go around because the first airplane was still on the runway. The ATCT controller reported that despite two subsequent requests for the pilot to go around, the pilot did not acknowledge the requests, but the airplane stopped descending, and it continued to fly over the runway. Multiple witnesses located at and around the airport reported seeing the accident airplane flying about 100 feet above the runway in a nose-high attitude. As the airplane continued over the departure end of the runway, witnesses reported hearing the engine lose power, which was followed by a steep left turn back toward the airport. During the turn, the airplane's nose pitched down abruptly, and the airplane collided with the ground in a steep, nose-down attitude near the departure end of the runway. The airplane was equipped with two 19-gallon wing-mounted fuel tanks, of which 1.5 gallons of fuel in each tank is unusable. An on-scene wreckage examination revealed that about 1.8 gallons of fuel was removed from the right wing fuel tank, and about 1 quart of fuel was removed from the left wing fuel tank. Both fuel tanks were intact and not breached. The left wing fuel tank was equipped with a fuel vent line on the forward outboard area of the fuel tank. When comparing the final at-rest attitude of the airframe and wings, it is likely that the fuel within the left wing fuel tank was equivalent to the right wing fuel tank level; however, fuel would have drained from the left wing fuel tank through the vent line, thus resulting in a lower fuel level in the left wing fuel tank at the accident site. A subsequent postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of a mechanical malfunction or failure that would have precluded normal operation. Given the lack of mechanical deficiencies with the airplane, the amount of fuel discovered in the airplane's fuel tanks, and the witness statements, it is likely that the fuel tank inlets became unported when the airplane entered the nose-high attitude during the go-around, which resulted in fuel starvation. The pilot's decision to return to the airport by initiating a turn at low altitude and low airspeed following the loss the of engine power resulted in an aerodynamic stall and a loss of control with insufficient altitude to recover.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Loss of engine power (total) during approach (VFR go-around)
- Loss of control in flight during approach (VFR go-around) defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during approach (VFR go-around)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid level
- cause Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid management
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › (general) › Not attained/maintained
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 536.7 hours in all; 999,999 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Wasilla AK
- Destination: PAMR Anchorage AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 25, 4,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.63 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
23 documents, released by the NTSB on October 27, 2014. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.
