Cessna 150 accident near Spiden Island, Washington, April 13, 1996
On April 13, 1996 at about 2:30 am local time, a Cessna 150, registered N171RJ, was substantially damaged in an accident near Spiden Island, Washington (Spiden Island 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's selection of an unsuitable airstrip for the landing and subsequent takeoff, and his delay in aborting the takeoff, which resulted in an overrun and collision with an embankment and trees. Factors relating to the accident were: the short, wet, grassy, downhill airstrip conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 13, 1996 · about 2:30 am local time
- Place
- Spiden Island, Washington · Spiden Island · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150 · all 150s on the register
- Registration
- N171RJ · registry record · serial 15063038
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot stated that he had flown into the 1,500-foot grass airstrip earlier in the day with a flight instructor in a Cessna 185. After the landing, he and the instructor took off using 1/3 of the length of the airstrip. Later that day, the pilot rented a Cessna 150 and took a friend on a personal flight to the same airstrip. He stated that he landed the airplane uphill to the east without incident. He then turned around and began a takeoff roll downhill to the west on the wet grass airstrip. The pilot further stated that he aborted the takeoff 2/3 of the way down the strip because he believed he was not getting the necessary airspeed to rotate. He reduced the power and applied brakes, but was unable to stop the airplane before it impacted an embankment and trees on the opposite end of the airstrip. No mechanical malfunction was reported by the pilot. The pilot stated that the airstrip was 'too small' for the aircraft to take off and that he should not have landed there.
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: 503 hours in all; 82 in this make and model; 65 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 349 as pilot in command; 90 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Fountain Rental/Leasing
The flight
- Destination: BLI Bellingham WA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 1,500 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 180° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,700 ft; scat at 1,700 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:45 am from PAE, 25 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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number SEA96LA080.