Cessna 152 accident near Orangeburg, South Carolina, June 21, 1997
On June 21, 1997 at about 2:30 am local time, a Cessna 152, registered N64936, was substantially damaged in an accident near Orangeburg, South Carolina (Orangeburg Municipal airport). 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
Failure of the pilot to recover from the bounced landing. Contributing to the accident was the pilots complacency.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 21, 1997 · about 2:30 am local time
- Place
- Orangeburg, South Carolina · Orangeburg Municipal · 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
- N64936 · no longer on the register · serial 15281485
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While practicing night landings for currency, the airplane touched down then bounced. The pilot then applied forward elevator input and the airplane touched down and bounced again. The power remained at idle and the airplane then stalled and impacted the runway nose low causing the nose landing gear to collapse. The pilot stated that he was not concentrating on the accident landing but thinking about the next landing and was in a rush to complete the landings. He further stated that he should have applied power to go-around after the airplane bounced the first time.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 111 hours in all; 31 in this make and model; 2 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 44 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,082 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 10, 1997; 91 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Ferland, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: OGB at 2:25 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 23, 4,501 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, bright
- Wind: from 190° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 am from OGB
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.