Cessna 150G accident near Dowagiac, Michigan, February 1, 1997
On February 1, 1997 at about 9:35 pm local time, a Cessna 150G, registered N4655X, was substantially damaged in an accident near Dowagiac, Michigan (Dowagiac Municipal airport). It was an instructional 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's failure to maintain directional control. A factor was the snowbank.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 1, 1997 · about 9:35 pm local time
- Place
- Dowagiac, Michigan · Dowagiac Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150G · all 150Gs on the register
- Registration
- N4655X · registry record · serial 15064705
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot was conducting solo touch-and-go landings. While in the transition from a landing to takeoff, directional control was lost. The pilot attempted to continue the takeoff; however, the landing gear contacted a snowbank and the airplane nosed over.
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: 47 hours in all; 42 in this make and model; 26 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 5 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,000 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 30, 1996
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: C91 at 8:10 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 4,700 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 12,000 ft; scat at 1,700 ft
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:42 pm from KBE, 16 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Other NTSB records under N4655X the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CHI97LA064.