Cessna 150L accident near Cullowhee, North Carolina, December 7, 1986
On December 7, 1986 at about 7:15 pm local time, a Cessna 150L, registered N6860G, was destroyed in an accident near Cullowhee, North Carolina (Jackson County Airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people had minor injuries. 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
- December 7, 1986 · about 7:15 pm local time
- Place
- Cullowhee, North Carolina · Jackson County Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150L · all 150Ls on the register
- Registration
- N6860G · no longer on the register · serial 15072360
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER NOT FLYING FOR ABOUT 7 YRS, THE PLT OBTAINED FLT INSTRUCTION IN PREPARATION FOR A BIENNIAL FLT REVIEW. HIS 1ST FLT WAS COMPLETED 4 DAYS PRIOR TO THE ACDNT. THE ACDNT FLT WAS TO BE DEVOTED PRIMARILY TO TAKEOFFS & LANDINGS. THE STUDENT PLT WAS RPRTD TO UNDERSTAND THAT THE 1ST LANDING WAS TO BE A FULL STOP, FOLLOWED BY A TAXI-BACK FOR ANOTHER TAKEOFF. AS THE ACFT WAS ON THE LANDING ROLL, HE APPLIED INPUTS TO THE CONTROLS TO MOVE THE ACFT TO THE RGT SIDE OF THE RWY TO TURN BACK. AT APRX THAT TIME, THE INSTRUCTOR (CFI) RPRTDLY TOLD THE STUDENT TO MAKE THE LANDING A TOUCH-&-GO.AFTER POWER WAS APPLIED FOR TAKEOFF, THE ACFT VEERED OFF THE RGT SIDE OF THE RWY, WENT DOWN AN EMBANKMENT & CAME TO REST INVERTED. THE CFI SAID THE STUDENT RESISTED HIS INPUTS TO THE FLT CONTROLS TO CORRECT THE SITUATION.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 18,000 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 22 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,386 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 26, 1986; 74 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 32, 2,900 ft by 50 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft; not recorded at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 18°F (-8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 pm from AVL, 33 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.
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.