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CHI89LA116

1989-06-18 · PORT HURON, Michigan, United States · Serious · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport PHN

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

IMPROPER IN-FLIGHT PLANNING/DECISION BY THE STUDENT PILOT AND HIS INADVERTENT ENCOUNTER WITH WAKE TURBULENCE FROM THE TRANSPORT AIRCRAFT. THE STUDENT'S LACK OF TOTAL EXPERIENCE WAS CONSIDERED A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR.

Factual narrative

ACCORDING TO A WITNESS, THE STUDENT PLT WAS ON AN APCH TO LAND & WAS FOLLOWING A JUNKER JU-52 (A GERMAN, WORLD WAR II, TRI-MOTOR, TRANSPORT PLANE). THE WITNESS ESTIMATED THE STUDENT'S ACFT (A CESSNA 150) WAS APRX 1/4 MI BEHIND THE JU-52. THE JU-52 TOUCHED DOWN ON THE FIRST 1/3 OF THE RWY. AS THE CESSNA WAS ABOUT TO LAND, IT WAS AT APRX 20 TO 50 FT AGL, WHEN IT BANKED RAPIDLY FROM SIDE TO SIDE, THE NOSE PITCHED, & THEN THE PLANE CRASHED. THE STUDENT'S INSTRUCTOR & SOME WITNESSES SUSPECTED THE CESSNA HAD ENCOUNTERED WAKE TURBULENCE FROM THE JU-52. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1989_CHI89LA116.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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