Cessna 150 accident near Mckinney, Texas, March 25, 2020
On March 25, 2020 at about 11:30 pm local time, a 1965 Cessna 150, registered N4729U, was substantially damaged in an accident during initial climb near Mckinney, Texas (Aero Country airport). It was a personal flight 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 pilot's inadequate preflight fuel planning and inflight fuel management, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and a total loss of engine power.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 25, 2020 · about 11:30 pm local time
- Place
- Mckinney, Texas · Aero Country · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150 E, built 1965 · all 150s on the register
- Registration
- N4729U · no longer on the register · serial 15061177
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot conducted a preflight inspection of the airplane and estimated that he had about 14 gallons of fuel on board before departure based on measuring the fuel in the tanks with a dipstick. He then completed a 1-hour, round-trip flight during which he conducted three touch-and-go landings at the first destination, then returned to the departure airport and completed three more touch-and-go landings. During climbout after the third landing, the engine experienced a total loss of power. The pilot was unable to restart the engine and made a forced landing to a golf course; the airplane collided with a tee box and nosed over, resulting in substantial damage to the airplane’s wings, forward fuselage, vertical stabilizer, and rudder. While the airplane was inverted, fuel was leaking from the fuel tank caps, but the fuel caps remained intact and secured. After the airplane was flipped upright, 2 to 3 gallons of fuel were drained from the tanks. The airplane's unusable fuel is 3.5 gallons. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of fuel in the rest of the fuel system and no other pre-accident anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Based on that lack of usable fuel in the fuel system, it is likely that the pilot's inadequate preflight planning and inflight fuel management resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.
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
- Fuel exhaustion during initial climb defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during emergency descent
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Inspection › Preflight inspection › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Planning/preparation › Fuel planning › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid management
- cause Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid level
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 1,670 hours in all; 200 in this make and model; 70 in the last 90 days; 20 in the last 30 days; 1,520 as pilot in command; 220 on instruments
- Last flight review: November 13, 2018
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,832.7 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 8, 2019; 12.6 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,601 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 3,383 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: T31 Mckinney TX at 11:28 pm
- Destination: T31 Mckinney TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 4,352 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 13 knots
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 29.26 inHg
- Observation at 11:53 pm from KDAL, 22 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
8 documents, released by the NTSB on June 26, 2020. 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.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Pilot's Statement | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Maintenance Records | PDF, 4 pages | View Download |
| 4 | Engine Examination Documentation | PDF, 4 pages | View Download |
| 5 | Correspondence - FAA Inspector | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 6 | Cessna 150E Fuel System Information | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
| 7 | Release of Aircraft Wreckage, NTSB Form 6120.15 | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 8 | Photos | PDF, 4 pages | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Other NTSB records under N4729U 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.