Cessna 150M accident near Deming, New Mexico, October 20, 1997
On October 20, 1997 at about 6:20 pm local time, a Cessna 150M, registered N6206K, was destroyed in an accident near Deming, New Mexico. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The loss of engine power due to fuel contamination. Contributing was unsuitable terrain consisting of high vegetation and sand.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 20, 1997 · about 6:20 pm local time
- Place
- Deming, New Mexico · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150M · all 150Ms on the register
- Registration
- N6206K · no longer on the register · serial 15077586
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane had been both hangared and kept outdoors since the summer of 1995. In May 1997, the Deming City Administrator observed the pilot transferring fuel from the sump of a 10,000 gallon fuel storage tank into a fuel truck. The pilot told him that he was bypassing the tank's sump to meet the fixed base operator (FBO) needs (the pilot was also the FBO manager). Approximately one month before the accident, the pilot told an FBO employee that he had drained the airplane's fuel tanks and asked that they be refilled. The employee said he put 14 to 15 gallons of fuel in the airplane (fuel capacity is 26 gallons). On the day of the accident, the pilot found the airplane's battery dead. He hand started the engine and departed for California. The alternator needs at least 3 volts current to energize its magnetic field for electrical power generation. The airplane was last seen flying west at an estimated altitude of 400 to 500 feet agl. The wreckage was found the next day in soft, sandy soil on level terrain, covered by 2 to 5 feet tall brush. Postcrash examination revealed that the flaps were up, and the gascolator and fuel tanks contained a fluid other than aviation fuel.
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, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 13,000 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-100-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DMN at 6:05 pm
- Destination: E60 Eloy AZ
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 12 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 60 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 7,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:54 pm from DMN, 15 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.
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.