Cessna 152 accident near Marco Island, Florida, May 31, 1988
On May 31, 1988 at about 7:00 pm local time, a Cessna 152, registered N25516, was substantially damaged in an accident near Marco Island, Florida (Marco Island 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 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
- May 31, 1988 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Marco Island, Florida · Marco Island
- 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
- N25516 · no longer on the register · serial 15280709
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE ON AN INSTRUCTIONAL FLT PRIOR TO TOUCHDOWN ON RWY 17, THE FLT WAS ADVISED THAT THE WINDS WERE FROM 110 DEGREES AT 15 KTS WITH GUSTS TO 20. THE CFI STATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT WAS SLOW ON FINAL APCH. WITH 20 DEGREES OF FLAPS LOWERED, THE ACFT WAS BLOWN OFF THE RT SIDE OF THE RWY AFTER WHICH THE STUDENT PLT OVERCORRECTED TO THE LEFT. IT THEN DEPARTED THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RNWY STALLED, AND COLLIDED WITH TREES.
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; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 458 hours in all; 148 in this make and model; 69 in the last 90 days; 16 in the last 30 days; 335 as pilot in command; 50 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,828 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 3, 1988; 103 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Crest One Aviation, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: X14 La Belle FL at 6:25 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 5,008 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 110° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:49 pm from APF, 11 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.