Cessna 150L accident near Stow, Massachusetts, January 15, 2015
On January 15, 2015 at about 8:30 pm local time, a 1972 Cessna 150L, registered N5443Q, was substantially damaged in an accident during approach (VFR go-around) near Stow, Massachusetts (Minuteman Airfield). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor's delayed remedial action in response to the student pilot's improper go-around, which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack, experiencing an aerodynamic stall, and impacting a parked airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 15, 2015 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- Stow, Massachusetts · Minuteman Airfield · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150L M, built 1972 · all 150Ls on the register
- Registration
- N5443Q · no longer on the register · serial 15073343
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor (CFI) stated that the student pilot flared the airplane too high while on approach for landing, and he instructed her to conduct a go-around. The student responded by applying engine power, but did not lower the airplane's nose. The CFI assumed control of the airplane "too late," and the airplane subsequently stalled and impacted an unoccupied airplane parked near the runway, resulting in substantial damage. The CFI reported there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies of the airplane or engine that would have precluded normal operation.
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
- Loss of control in flight during approach (VFR go-around) defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during approach (VFR go-around)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Instructor/check pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Student/instructed pilot
Dual student
- Flight time: 20 hours in all; 13 in this make and model; 15 in the last 90 days; 8.5 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: glider; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 3,000 hours in all; 160 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 50 in the last 30 days; 2,800 as pilot in command; 2,000 on instruments
- Last flight review: June 29, 2014
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,776.8 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 1, 2014
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 8,777 hours total
- Operator: Aptis Aviation LLC
The flight
- Departed from: 6B6 Stow MA at 7:00 pm
- Destination: 6B6 Stow MA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 3, 2,770 ft by 48 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,300 ft
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.93 inHg
- Observation at 7:52 pm from KFIT, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.