Cessna 150L accident near Lehighton, Pennsylvania, December 28, 1989
On December 28, 1989 at about 5:00 pm local time, a Cessna 150L, registered N11614, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lehighton, Pennsylvania (Jake Arner Memorial airport). It was an instructional 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
LOSS OF ENGINE POWER FOR AN UNDETERMINED REASON.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 28, 1989 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Lehighton, Pennsylvania · Jake Arner Memorial · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150L · all 150Ls on the register
- Registration
- N11614 · registry record · serial 15075568
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR (CFI) AND STUDENT PILOT WERE PERFORMING A TOUCH-AND-GO LANDING. ON THE TAKEOFF PHASE AT ABOUT 150 TO 200 FT AGL, ENGINE ROUGHNESS OCCURRED, WHICH WAS FOLLOWED BY A PROGRESSIVE POWER LOSS. THE PILOTS ATTEMPTED TO RETURN TO THE AIRPORT, BUT THERE WAS INSUFFICIENT ALTITUDE AND THE AIRCRAFT SETTLED INTO TREES. A POST-ACCIDENT EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED NO REASON FOR THE POWER LOSS. DURING A TEST, THE ENGINE STARTED AND RAN NORMALLY.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 431 hours in all; 172 in this make and model; 61 in the last 90 days; 21 in the last 30 days; 371 as pilot in command; 63 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,882 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 5, 1989; 13 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 1N9 Allentown PA at 4:30 pm
- Destination: 22N
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 26, 3,000 ft by 50 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 25 knots
- Visibility: 12 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 25°F (-4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.