Cessna 152 accident near Thonotosassa, Florida, March 3, 2026
On March 3, 2026 at about 3:42 pm local time, a 1978 Cessna 152, registered N588BR, was substantially damaged in an accident during approach near Thonotosassa, Florida (Tampa Exec 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).
Preview. This page is not yet listed for search engines.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s inadequate fuel planning and improper in-flight decision-making, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 3, 2026 · about 3:42 pm local time
- Place
- Thonotosassa, Florida · Tampa Exec · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 152, built 1978 · all 152s on the register
- Registration
- N588BR · registry record · serial 15281860
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot had planned a multi-leg, cross-country flight at night that was to include a touch-and-go landing at the intermediate destination airport. The pilot had planned that the total duration of the flight would be about 3.25 hours. During the return flight leg, the pilot selected lower altitude cruising altitude than she had originally planned for, deviated slightly from her planned route, and decided to perform a practice instrument approach to the destination airport. About 3.8 (tachometer) hours into the flight, and about while about 10 miles away from the destination airport, the airplane’s engine began losing power. After about 1 minute, the engine lost total power and the pilot conducted a forced landing. The airplane subsequently struck trees and sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, empennage, and wings. Maintenance personnel who recovered the airplane from the accident site drained about 8 oz of fuel from one fuel tank and about 9 oz from the other fuel tank, which was less than the airplane’s unusable fuel quantity of 3/4-gallon per tank. The pilot reported there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Based on this information, the pilot’s preflight and inflight fuel planning did not sufficiently account for the prevailing weather conditions, the deviations from her flight plan, and the airplane’s actual fuel consumption, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.
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
- Fuel exhaustion during approach defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during emergency descent
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Planning/preparation › Fuel planning › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid level
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 246.2 hours in all; 246.2 in this make and model; 33.3 in the last 90 days; 9.1 in the last 30 days; 119.6 as pilot in command; 0 on instruments
- Last flight review: December 1, 2025
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,060.4 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 11, 2025
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 95,375 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: VDF Tampa FL at 1:35 am
- Destination: ZPH Zephyrhills FL
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 070° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.23 inHg
- Observation at 11:00 pm from VDF, 3 miles away
Weather report (METAR): METAR KVDF 040355Z AUTO 07003KT 10SM CLR 19/17 A3023 RMK AO2 T01860174
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 |
Other NTSB records under N588BR 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 ERA26LA135.