Cessna 152 accident near Bakersfield, California, October 15, 1982
On October 15, 1982 at about 6:15 pm local time, a Cessna 152, registered N65616, was destroyed in an accident near Bakersfield, California. 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).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 15, 1982 · about 6:15 pm local time
- Place
- Bakersfield, California · 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
- N65616 · registry record · serial 81653
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING FLIGHT, THE PIOT DECIDED TO PRACTICE A SIMULATED FORCED LANDING. DURING AN APPROACH TO AN ALFALFA FIELD, THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK A POWER LINE AND CRASHED.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,500 hours in all; 600 in this make and model; 42 in the last 90 days; 13 in the last 30 days; 3,200 as pilot in command; 1,100 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,500 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 17 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BFL Bakersfield CA at 10:55 am
- Destination: BFL Bakersfield CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 25,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 169°F (76°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.