DEN02LA079

Factual narrative

On July 18, 2002, at approximately 1345 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 150F, N8067S, was substantially damaged when it struck terrain while attempting to return to the airport immediately after takeoff from Grants-Milan Municipal Airport, Grants, New Mexico. The private pilot, the sole occupant on board, was not injured. The pilot was operating the airplane under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal cross-country flight which was originating at the time of the accident. The pilot had not filed a flight plan; he said his next planned stop was Moriarty, New Mexico. The pilot stated that he climbed approximately 350 feet and made one circle to climb to altitude. The airplane was having difficulty climbing. As he executed a shallow turn back toward the airport, the airplane had difficulty maintaining altitude. He was considering an off-field landing, but realized there was a soil berm in his flight path. The pilot "eased" the control column back to clear the berm, and the airplane stalled. The airplane then struck the ground, bending both wing tips up, and bending both the engine mount and firewall. The density altitude was calculated to be 9,322 feet. The airplane's POH (Pilot's Operating Handbook) states that the service ceiling of this aircraft was 12,650 feet. The pilot stated that he climbed approximately 350 feet and made one circle to climb to altitude. The airplane was having difficulty climbing. As he executed a shallow turn back toward the airport, the pilot had difficulty maintaining altitude. He was considering an off-field landing, but realized there was a soil berm in his flight path. The pilot "eased" the control column back to clear the berm, and the airplane stalled. The airplane then struck the ground, bending both wing tips up, and bending both the engine mount and firewall. The density altitude was calculated to be 9,322 feet. The service ceiling of the airplane was12,650 feet. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12