Cessna 152 incident near Haleiwa, Hawaii, December 11, 1988
On December 11, 1988 at about 10:10 pm local time, a Cessna 152, registered N94825, suffered minor damage in an incident near Haleiwa, Hawaii. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt. 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 incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 11, 1988 · about 10:10 pm local time
- Place
- Haleiwa, Hawaii
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 152 · all 152s on the register
- Registration
- N94825 · registry record · serial 15285796
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT EXPERIENCED A PARTIAL LOSS OF POWER AND COLLIDED WITH THE TERRAIN WHILE COMPLETING AN EMERGENCY LANDING IN A SUGAR CANE FIELD. DURING THIS PARTICULAR MANEUVER THE CFI INDICATED THAT HE WAS REASONABLY SURE HE CLEARED THE ENGINE AT LEAST ONCE A FEW MINUTES AFTER STARTING THE MANEUVER. WHILE HE DOES NOT ACTUALLY REMEMBER CLEARING THE ENGINE AGAIN HE STATED, 'I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHEN I CLEARED, OR HOW MAY TIMES, BUT I'M SURE I DID IT AT LEAST ONCE.' AN EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF AN ENGINE MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE. THE WEATHER REPORTED RAIN SHOWERS OF UNKNOWN INTENSITY EAST THROUGH SOUTHEAST, TEMPERATURE 78 DEGREES, DEW POINT 68 DEGREES. ACCORDING TO THE FAA CARBURETOR ICING PROBABILITY CHART, THE PILOT WAS OPERATING IN CARBURETOR ICING CONDITIONS AT GLIDE POWER.
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: 1,000 hours in all; 800 in this make and model; 185 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,348 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-N2C (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Hickam-Wheeler Aero Club
The flight
- Departed from: HHI Oahu HI at 9:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,000 ft; scat at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:10 pm from HHI, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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.
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 documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text 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 LAX89IA062.