Cessna 152 accident near Hawley, Minnesota, March 29, 2013
On March 29, 2013 at about 8:30 pm local time, a Cessna 152, registered N5367B, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Hawley, Minnesota (Moorhead Municipal Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The noninstrument-rated pilot’s improper decision to conduct a flight into known instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in a loss of control.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 29, 2013 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- Hawley, Minnesota · Moorhead Municipal Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 152 · all 152s on the register
- Registration
- N5367B · no longer on the register · serial 15283850
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The noninstrument-rated private pilot departed on a personal flight without a flight plan. According to a designated pilot examiner, the pilot obtained weather information on a computer before the flight. Weather reports indicated that instrument meteorological conditions prevailed before and during the flight at the destination airport. According to the pilot's mother, she talked to him during the flight, told him that fog existed in the area, and asked him to land in another area; the pilot continued the flight without diverting. Search and rescue operations were conducted about 4 hours later when the pilot's mother contacted local authorities due to concern that he had not arrived. The airplane wreckage was located about 15 miles east of the destination airport and exhibited a high-speed, right-wing-low impact with terrain, indicative of a loss of control. Examination of the airplane revealed no mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.
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
- Preflight or dispatch event during prior to flight
- VFR encounter with IMC during enroute (cruise) defining event
- Loss of control in flight during enroute (cruise)
- VFR encounter with IMC during uncontrolled descent
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during uncontrolled descent
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Experience/knowledge › Experience/qualifications › Qualification/certification › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › (general) › Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues › Experience/knowledge › Experience/qualifications › Recent experience › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Ceiling/visibility/precip › (general) › Contributed to outcome
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 64 hours in all; 61 in this make and model; 1 in the last 90 days; 0 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 28, 2013
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Superior Flying Services LLC
The flight
- Departed from: SUW Superior WI at 2:00 pm
- Destination: JKJ Moorhead MN
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 0 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 200 ft
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.18 inHg
- Observation at 4:55 pm from JKJ, 16 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.