Cessna 150 accident near Harrisburg, Nebraska, April 30, 1986
On April 30, 1986 at about 10:35 pm local time, a Cessna 150, registered N10768, was substantially damaged in an accident near Harrisburg, Nebraska. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. 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
- April 30, 1986 · about 10:35 pm local time
- Place
- Harrisburg, Nebraska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150 · all 150s on the register
- Registration
- N10768 · no longer on the register · serial 15075021
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT IMPACTED IN A 40 DEGREE NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE FOLLOWING A STALL-SPIN. NO MECHANICAL DESCREPANCIES WERE NOTED WITH THE ACFT AND NO PRE-EXISTING PHYSICAL INCAPACITATING HISTORY OF THE PIC WAS DISCOVERED. ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS PRIOR TO THIS FLT, THE PIC HAD ASKED HIS FLT INSTRUCTOR TO DEMONSTRATE 'HAMMER HEAD' STALLS. BUT THE FLT INSTRUCTOR DECLINED. WX WAS CONSIDERED GOOD VFR FOR THE SOLO CROSS-COUNTRY TRAINING FLIGHT. RADAR SHOWED THE ACFT MANEUVERING AWAY FM THE PLANNED ROUTE OF FLIGHT JUST PRIOR TO DISAPPEARING FROM RADAR CONTACT. THE IMPACT OCCURRED SHORTLY AFTER RADAR CONTACT WAS LOST.
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: 140 hours in all; 34 in this make and model; 121 in the last 90 days; 45 in the last 30 days; 86 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,648 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 27, 1986; 75 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,650 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-200 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Emery School Of Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: BFF Scottsbluff NE at 9:15 pm
- Destination: GXY Greeley CO
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:00 pm from BFF, 25 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.
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.