Cessna 150K accident near Selbyville, Delaware, August 1, 1988
On August 1, 1988 at about 3:45 pm local time, a Cessna 150K, registered N5682G, was substantially damaged in an accident near Selbyville, Delaware (Warrington airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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
- August 1, 1988 · about 3:45 pm local time
- Place
- Selbyville, Delaware · Warrington · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150K · all 150Ks on the register
- Registration
- N5682G · no longer on the register · serial 15071182
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT WAS IN THE PROCESS OF PICKING UP A BANNER WHEN THE AIRCRAFT STALLED AND CRASHED INTO A WOODED AREA. THE BANNER WAS PICKED UP AT AN AIRSPEED OF 80 MPH AND THE ACFT ALTITUDE WAS INCREASED TO 250 FT AGL. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT THE WINGS OF THE ACFT ROCKED BACK AND FORTH AND THE ACFT BECAME UNSTABLE. THE TOW BANNER WAS THEN RELEASED, THE ACFT STALLED AND DESCENDED INTO A WOODED AREA IN A NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,424 hours in all; 473 in this make and model; 231 in the last 90 days; 107 in the last 30 days; 1,309 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,044 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 27, 1988; 125 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 0N7 Selbyville DE at 3:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 32, 2,250 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:51 pm from SBY, 16 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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.