Cessna 152 accident near Plain City, Ohio, September 14, 1990
On September 14, 1990 at about 8:37 am local time, a Cessna 152, registered N95644, was destroyed in an accident near Plain City, Ohio. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
POOR JUDGEMENT OF THE PILOT DUE TO CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL, FLIGHT BY THE PILOT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC), AND HIS FAILURE TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT DUE TO SPATIAL DISORIENTATION. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: DARKNESS, ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS, THE PILOT'S LACK OF TOTAL FLIGHT EXPERIENCE, AND HIS LACK OF EXPERIENCE/TRAINING FOR FLIGHT AT NIGHT OR IN INSTRUMENT WEATHER CONDITIONS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 14, 1990 · about 8:37 am local time
- Place
- Plain City, Ohio · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 152 · all 152s on the register
- Registration
- N95644 · no longer on the register · serial 15285950
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE NON-CERTIFIED PLT & PSGR DEPARTED THE ARPT AT NIGHT IN WX THAT WAS ABOUT 300' OVERCAST WITH 3 MI VISIBILITY & FOG. THE PLT HAD ONLY ABOUT 8.3 HRS OF FLT TIME. HE HAD NO TRAINING FOR FLT AT NIGHT. AFTER TAKEOFF, HE RADIOED A DISTRESS CALL TO THE LOCAL APCH CTL FACILITY. THE APCH CTLR ATTEMPTED TO VECTOR THE ACFT TO A SAFE LANDING. ABOUT 12 MIN LATER, THE CTLR LOST RADIO & RADAR CONTACT WITH THE PLANE. THE ACFT WAS FOUND WHERE IT HAD CRASHED IN AN OPEN FIELD. THERE WAS EVIDENCE THAT THE ACFT WAS IN A STEEP DSCNT WHEN IT CRASHED. THE PROP WAS TWISTED & BENT WITH CHORDWISE SCRATCHES. TOXICOLOGY TESTING OF THE PLT'S BLOOD SHOWED AN ALCOHOL LVL OF 230 MG/DL (0.230%).
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
- Flight time: 8 hours in all; 8 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,427 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 26, 1990; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-N2C (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Aero Squadron Flying Club
The flight
- Departed from: OSU Columbus OH
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 220° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 300 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 29.89 inHg
- Observation at 4:35 am
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.