Cessna 152 accident near Ramona, California, October 25, 2000
On October 25, 2000 at about 8:30 pm local time, a Cessna 152, registered N5447L, was substantially damaged in an accident near Ramona, California (Ramona airport). 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 dual student's habit interference, from his previous training in a different type of airplane, that precipitated his improper use of the elevator control during a go-around.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 25, 2000 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- Ramona, California · Ramona · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 152 · all 152s on the register
- Registration
- N5447L · registry record · serial 15284317
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The instructor ordered the student to go-around and the student pushed forward on the control wheel with his left hand and pulled back on the throttle with his right hand. The airplane struck the runway in a nose down attitude resulting in substantial damage. The student's approach had been "high and fast" and they were at 7 feet agl and 70 knots at midfield. The student pilot was a retired military pilot with about 4,000 hours of experience flying military fighter airplanes. The accident occurred on the student's third flight in an airplane with a control wheel. In the accident airplane, the left-seated pilot typically manipulates the control wheel with the left hand and the throttle with the right hand. In most military fighter airplanes, the throttle is manipulated with the left hand and the stick is manipulated with the right hand.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 263 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,814 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 13, 2000; 70 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Pinnacle Aviation Academy
The flight
- Departed from: CRQ Carlsbad CA at 7:00 pm
- Destination: RNM
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 4,000 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 163°F (73°C), dew point 115°F (46°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from RNM
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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.
Other NTSB records under N5447L the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.