Cessna 150H accident near Dorado, Puerto Rico, August 30, 1983
On August 30, 1983 at about 5:25 pm local time, a Cessna 150H, registered N6479S, was substantially damaged in an accident near Dorado, Puerto Rico. 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 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
- August 30, 1983 · about 5:25 pm local time
- Place
- Dorado, Puerto Rico
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150H · all 150Hs on the register
- Registration
- N6479S · registry record · serial 15067279
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING A DUAL INSTRUCTIONAL FLT, THE INSTRUCTOR PLT (CFI) RETARDED THE THROTTLE TO SIMULATE A FORCED LANDING. HE STATED THAT THE STUDENT DID THE EMERGENCY PROCEDURE & HEADED FOR THE FIELD. LATER, WHEN THE THROTTLE WAS ADVANCED, THE ENG DID NOT RESPOND. THE CFI ASSUMED CONTROL OF THE ACFT & TRIED TO RESTART THE ENG 3 TIMES, BUT IT WOULD NOT RESPOND. HE THEN ATTEMPTED TO MAKE AN ACTUAL FORCED LANDING IN AN OPEN FIELD, BUT WAS UNABLE TO CLEAR OVER A FENCE. THE LANDING GEAR & LEFT WING HIT THE FENCE & THE ACFT PITCHED DOWN, NOSE 1ST & WAS DAMAGED. LATER, THE ENG WAS OPERATED WITH NO INDICATION FOR A LOSS OF 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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,778 hours in all; 1,231 in this make and model; 59 in the last 90 days; 1,577 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,016 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 22, 1983; 49 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SIG San Juan PR
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 14 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,000 ft; scat at 1,800 ft
- Temperature: 86°F (30°C), dew point 75°F (24°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:54 pm from SJU, 18 miles away
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.
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.