Cessna 150G accident near Ft Wayne, Indiana, June 28, 1988
On June 28, 1988 at about 11:30 pm local time, a Cessna 150G, registered N4744X, was destroyed in an accident near Ft Wayne, Indiana (Smith Field). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
INADVERTENT STALL/SPIN DUE TO THE FAILURE TO MAINTAIN ADEQUATE AIRSPEED, AND FAILURE TO AVOID THE ADVERSE WIND CONDITIONS ASSOCIATED WITH A THUNDERSTORM.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 28, 1988 · about 11:30 pm local time
- Place
- Ft Wayne, Indiana · Smith Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150G · all 150Gs on the register
- Registration
- N4744X · no longer on the register · serial 15064794
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE INSTRUCTOR (CFI) & STUDENT BGN PRACTICING TOUCH-&-GO (T&G) LNDGS. AT 1ST, RWY 31 WAS IN USE. AFTER THE 1ST T&G, THE CFI TOLD THE STUDENT TO CHG TO RWY 5 FOR MORE FAVORABLE WIND CONDS. AT ABT THAT TIME, A COLD FNT WAS MVG THRU THE AREA, A TSTM WAS ABT 5 MI NW OF THE ARPT, THE WX WAS GETTING WINDY & THE CFI NOTED LGT RAIN ON THE WINDSHIELD. DRG THE CLIMB AFTER THE 2ND T&G, THE CFI NOTED THE ACFT HAD STOPPED CLIMBING AT ABT 200' AGL & TOOK CTL OF THE ACFT. LATER, HE SAID THE AIRSPEED WAS ABT 60 TO 65 KTS (BUT THE AIRSPEED INDCR WAS CALIBRATED IN MPH). CONCERNED ABT PWR LINES AHD, HE TURNEDTHE ACFT. HE THEN NOTICED IT WAS DSCNDG RAPIDLY & THE SPEED WAS DWN TO '55 OR MAYBE EVEN 50, WITHOUT REALLY CHANGING THEPITCH ANGLE.' THE ACFT THEN BANKED LEFT & ENTERED A NOSE DWN ATTITUDE. IT CRASHED INTO TREES, 2 VEHICLES & THE GND, THENSLID INTO A MOBILE HOME. CHILD NR MOBILE HOME WAS FATALLY INJURED. CFI THOUGHT FLAPS WERE RETRACTED FOR TKOF, BUT THEY WERE FND EXTDD 15 DEG. CANNABINOIDS FND IN PLT'S URINE, BUT NONE FND IN HIS BLOOD; URINE/PENTOBARBITAL LVL, 0.40 MG/DL.
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: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 635 hours in all; 400 in this make and model; 160 in the last 90 days; 54 in the last 30 days; 550 as pilot in command; 300 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,747 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 25, 1988; 60 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FWA Ft Wayne IN at 11:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 5, 3,110 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 12 knots, gusting 23
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 9,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:50 pm from FWA, 12 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.