Cessna 15OF accident near Columbia, South Carolina, March 24, 1999
On March 24, 1999 at about 11:44 pm local time, a Cessna 15OF, registered N8397G, was substantially damaged in an accident near Columbia, South Carolina. It was a personal 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 pilots failure to maintain a visual lookout during a forced landing to a highway. This resulted in the left main landing gear colliding with a rain grate separating the left main landing gear. Contributing to the accident was a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 24, 1999 · about 11:44 pm local time
- Place
- Columbia, South Carolina
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 15OF
- Registration
- N8397G · no longer on the register · serial 15062497
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was about 2 miles from his destination airport when he experienced a total loss of engine power. The pilot made a forced landing to a highway, landed on the shoulder, and the landing gear collided with a rain grate. The left main landing gear collided with a rain grate and separated. Visual examination of the left fuel tank revealed it was empty. The right fuel tank contained about 1/2 ounce of fuel.
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: 323 hours in all; 235 in this make and model; 66 in the last 90 days; 39 in the last 30 days; 236 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,989 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 1999; 7 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental 0200-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EDN Enterprise AL at 8:36 pm
- Destination: CAE
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 7,500 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:55 pm from CAE, 1 miles away
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.