Cessna 195 accident near Warrenton, Virginia, July 5, 2007
On July 5, 2007 at about 12:15 pm local time, a Cessna 195, registered N6381D, was substantially damaged in an accident near Warrenton, Virginia (Warrenton-Fauquier Airport). 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 pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing, which resulted in a ground loop and impact with terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 5, 2007 · about 12:15 pm local time
- Place
- Warrenton, Virginia · Warrenton-Fauquier Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 195 · all 195s on the register
- Registration
- N6381D · no longer on the register · serial 7455
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the pilot of the Cessna 195, during a familiarization flight with the airplane's owner, they returned to the departure airport after practicing maneuvers for approximately 1 hour to practice full stop landings. Prior to entering the traffic pattern, he announced his intentions by radio to make a go-around on the first approach to runway 32, to "check wind drift and get the landing attitude." He believed the wind was 240 degrees at 6 to 8 knots, and that it was well within his "recent tail wheel experience." After the go-around, he continued in the traffic pattern and commenced a second approach with the intention of making a full stop landing. The touchdown was "normal," with no "excessive bounce," and he maintained directional control for the first few seconds. Moments later, the airplane ground looped, departed the side of the runway, and was substantially damaged. The pilot believed that he had not "pulled the power all of the way off," and that a "greater than normal" wind shift occurred as the rudder was becoming less effective.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 11,498 hours in all; 1 in this make and model; 63 in the last 90 days; 21 in the last 30 days; 9,612 as pilot in command; 3,691 on instruments
- Last flight review: June 1, 2007
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Other crew
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 400 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,833 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 1, 2006; 7.6 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Jacobs R755B-2 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: W66 Warrenton VA at 7:30 am
- Destination: W66
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 32, 5,000 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 11,000 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 29.98 inHg
- Observation at 11:55 am from HEF, 12 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.