Cessna 150L accident near Boardman, Oregon, October 12, 2001
On October 12, 2001 at about 10:10 pm local time, a Cessna 150L, registered N18240, was substantially damaged in an accident near Boardman, Oregon (Boardman airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot-in-command's inability to maintain control of the aircraft while taxiing from landing resulting in a nose over. Contributing factors were high winds, crosswind conditions during taxi, and gusty wind conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 12, 2001 · about 10:10 pm local time
- Place
- Boardman, Oregon · Boardman · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150L · all 150Ls on the register
- Registration
- N18240 · no longer on the register · serial 15073893
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While en route to his destination the pilot discussed wind conditions with approach control, and then acquired the reported surface winds of 220 degrees at 18 knots gusting to 25 knots for the nearest reporting station to his destination. Upon arrival he executed an uneventful landing on runway 22 and then, as there was no parallel taxiway, back-taxied to the approach end of runway 22 to exit at the only taxiway available to the ramp. The pilot reported that while exiting the runway at a slow speed and with forward yoke and down aileron into the wind, a strong gust of wind caught the aircraft, rapidly swinging the nose of the aircraft to the right. During this maneuver the wind picked up the right wing and the left wingtip impacted the ground followed by the propeller. The aircraft then pivoted to an inverted position. Surface winds recorded approximately 17 minutes before the accident at stations surrounding the destination airport recorded winds from the south-southwest to west with speeds ranging from 16 to 24 knots and gusts up to 35 knots. A peak gust of 41 knots was recorded one hour and 17 minutes before the accident at a station about 42 nautical miles northeast of the site.
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, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 27,000 hours in all; 472 in this make and model; 55 in the last 90 days; 13 in the last 30 days; 19,148 as pilot in command; 156 on instruments
- Last flight review: May 31, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,508.2 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 17, 2001; 15.6 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: S95 College Place WA at 8:20 pm
- Destination: OR32 Boardman OR
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 20 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 41°F (5°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 9:53 pm from HRI, 28 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.