Cessna 150G accident near Penhook, Virginia, September 4, 2006

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

Shortly after departing on a VFR cross-country flight, the pilot contacted air traffic control and requested flight following services. About 7 minutes later, the pilot asked the controller if he knew what the "ceiling" of the clouds was, and about 4 minutes after that asked the controller for a radar vector. When queried about the request, the pilot responded, "we're kinda lost in some fog here." The controller then asked the pilot to state his present heading, to which the pilot replied, "I can't tell, I think we're upside-down." The controller instructed the pilot to turn right, and several seconds later advised the pilot to stop the turn. During this time the airplane had completed a left turn, and its altitude varied between 4,500 and 4,700 feet. The pilot then stated, "we can't see, we can't see, we can't see." Witnesses reported hearing a loud sound, and then saw the wings of the airplane descend to the ground detached from the fuselage. Examination of both wings revealed signatures consistent with an in-flight separation in the positive, or upward, direction. All of the fracture surfaces examined on both wings, and their respective wing struts, were consistent with overload. No evidence of any pre-separation failures or malfunctions were noted. The pilot did not contact any flight service stations or use DUATS to obtain a weather briefing prior to the accident flight; however, a relative of the pilot stated that the pilot had checked the weather and found that it "looked ok above 2,500 [feet]." The weather conditions reported in the vicinity of the accident site included low clouds and visibility in light to heavy rain. AIRMETs for IFR conditions and mountain obscuration were issued before the accident.

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.