Cessna 152 accident near Ventura, California, December 22, 1991
On December 22, 1991, a Cessna 152, registered N69028, was destroyed in an accident near Ventura, California. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN ADEQUATE ALTITUDE ABOVE THE GROUND TO RECOVER FROM AN INADVERTENT STALL. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE PILOT'S HANDLING OF THE AIRCRAFT SPECIFICALLY AN EXCESSIVE ANGLE OF ATTACK WHICH RESULTED IN REDUCED AIRSPEED AND SUBSEQUENT STALL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 22, 1991
- Place
- Ventura, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 152 · all 152s on the register
- Registration
- N69028 · no longer on the register · serial 85344
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A CESSNA 152 COLLIDED WITH SLOPING TERRAIN WHILE ON AN INTRODUCTORY FLIGHT LESSON ADMINISTERED TO A TO A PROSPECTIVE PILOT BY A CERTIFIED FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR (CFI). THE AIRPLANE WAS OBSERVED AT A LOW ALTITUDE IN A STEEP CLIMB. THE AIRPLANE THEN DESCEND VERTICALLY IN A NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE UNTIL IT IMPACTED THE GROUND. ONE EYE WITNESS DESCRIBED THE ENGINE NOISE AS LOUD WITHOUT SPUTTERING OR STOPPING. THE WITNESS ALSO INDICATED THAT THE AIRPLANE DID NOT APPEAR TO BE TRAILING SMOKE AS IT DESCENDED. THE WRECKAGE WAS DESTROYED BY A POST IMPACT FIRE. THE CFI WAS CERTIFIED ABOUT SEVEN MONTHS BEFORE THE ACCIDENT AND HAD ACCRUED ABOUT 169 FLIGHT HOURS AS A FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR. THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE OF MECHANICAL FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION NOTED DURING THE WRECKAGE EXAMINATION.
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: 540 hours in all; 168 in this make and model; 138 in the last 90 days; 60 in the last 30 days; 431 as pilot in command; 169 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,535 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 16, 1991; 5 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Channel Islands Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: CMA Camarillo CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 15,000 ft
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.