Cessna 152 accident near Salt Lake City, Utah, August 10, 1999
On August 10, 1999 at about 7:00 pm local time, a Cessna 152, registered N89186, was substantially damaged in an accident near Salt Lake City, Utah. It was an aerial observation 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
An inadvertent collision with a bird.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 10, 1999 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Salt Lake City, Utah · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 152 · all 152s on the register
- Registration
- N89186 · registry record · serial 15282665
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial observation flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot had been cleared to enter the class B airspace surrounding the Salt Lake City International Airport, and was southbound over Interstate Highway 15 at 5,500 feet mean sea level. When he was about 3 miles northeast of the airport, he noticed an eagle soaring at his altitude and at his 1 o'clock position. As the eagle drew closer, the pilot made an evasive turn to the left, but the eagle struck the right wing about 18 inches inboard of the wing tip. The airplane landed on runway 32 without further incident. Postaccident inspection by an FAA airworthiness inspector disclosed wing spar damage.
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: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,100 hours in all; 300 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 1,950 as pilot in command; 375 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BTF Bountiful UT at 6:55 pm
- Destination: SLC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 19 knots, gusting 24
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 15,000 ft; scat at 9,000 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:56 pm from SLC
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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 DEN99LA141.