Cessna C-150M accident near Council Bluffs, Iowa, September 7, 1984
On September 7, 1984 at about 4:00 pm local time, a Cessna C-150M, registered N9282U, was substantially damaged in an accident near Council Bluffs, Iowa (Council Bluffs Muni airport). It was an instructional 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
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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 7, 1984 · about 4:00 pm local time
- Place
- Council Bluffs, Iowa · Council Bluffs Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna C-150M
- Registration
- N9282U · registry record · serial 15078232
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
STUDENT PLT DEPARTED ON SUPERVISED SOLO FLT. LATER, INSTRUCTOR NOTED WIND CONDITIONS AT THE AIRPORT HAD BECOME UNFAVORABLE & ADVISED PLT BY RADIO TO DIVERT TO A SPECIFIC ALTERNATE WHERE WINDS CONDITIONS WERE FAVORABLE. PLT DISREGARDED ADVICE, PROCEEDED TO AIRPORT OF ORIGIN AND LANDED IN STRONG, GUSTY X-WIND. ACFT DRIFTED OFF DOWNWIND SIDE OFRWY, COLLIDED WITH A DITCH AND NOSED OVER. OMAHA, NB, (6 MILES NNW) REPORTED WINDS GUSTING TO 25 KTS WHEN THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED.
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: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 45 hours in all; 45 in this make and model; 38 in the last 90 days; 18 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,757 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 16, 1984
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Great Planes Air Service
The flight
- Departed from: LNK Lincoln NE at 3:20 pm
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 13, 3,500 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 12 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 4:00 pm from OMA, 6 miles away
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number MKC84LA278.