Cessna 152 accident near Lexington, North Carolina, November 9, 1986
On November 9, 1986 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Cessna 152, registered N6617L, was destroyed in an accident near Lexington, North Carolina. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 9, 1986 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Lexington, North Carolina
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 152 · all 152s on the register
- Registration
- N6617L · no longer on the register · serial 15228446
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING A LOCAL INSTRUCTIONAL FLIGHT, THE CFI WAS DEMONSTRATING A SIMULATED EMERGENCY LANDING TO A FIELD TO A 5 HOUR PRE-SOLO STUDENT PILOT. DURING RECOVERY THE AIRCRAFT WAS REPORTEDLY AFFECTED BY A DOWNDRAFT AND COLLIDED WITH A WIRE. THE ACFT BEGAN LOSING POWER AND WAS FORCED TO THE COLLIDE WITH THE GROUND. LOCAL SURFACE WINDS AT THE TIME WERE RECORDED TO BE 15 KNOTS WITH 28 KNOT GUSTS. THERE WERE NO PRE-IMPACT MECHANICAL OR STRUCTURAL DESCREPANCIES WITH THE AIRCRAFT.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 580 hours in all; 250 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 451 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,007 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 8, 1986; 44 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EXX Lexington NC at 6:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 15 knots, gusting 28
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:47 pm from INT, 25 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N6617L the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.