Cessna 150M accident near Mount Pleasant, Michigan, January 15, 1996
On January 15, 1996 at about 3:10 pm local time, a Cessna 150M, registered N8375U, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mount Pleasant, Michigan (Mount Pleasant Municipal 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 student pilot's inadequate preflight and the loose oil filler cap, which resulted in oil starvation and failure of the #1 cylinder connecting rod. A factor relating to this accident was the snow covered terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 15, 1996 · about 3:10 pm local time
- Place
- Mount Pleasant, Michigan · Mount Pleasant Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150M · all 150Ms on the register
- Registration
- N8375U · no longer on the register · serial 15077928
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was 4 miles from the airport when the airplane started to shake violently and the engine rpm dropped to 1500. He moved the mixture control to the rich position, turned on the carburetor heat and performed his checks, but couldn't find anything wrong. He then reported to approach control that the airplane was having engine trouble and was losing altitude, but that he had the airport in sight, and that he could make the field. As the pilot turned toward the airport, the engine rpm dropped to 1000, and the airplane began to lose altitude rapidly. The pilot made a forced landing on the airport 400 feet short of the runway, and the airplane nosed over in snow. Examination of the wreckage at the site revealed that the #1 cylinder connecting rod had failed due to oil starvation. The oil cap to the crankcase was found loose.
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: student
- Flight time: 34 hours in all; 32 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,608 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 29, 1995; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Grand Air Aviation, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: 4D0 Grand Ledge MI at 2:25 pm
- Destination: MOP
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 9, 5,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 050° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 10°F (-12°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:27 pm from MBS, 30 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.
Other NTSB records under N8375U 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.