NTSB CAROL · Event
Event FTW89IA168
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
FAILURE OF THE CESSNA 150 PILOT TO SEE-AND-AVOID THE CESSNA 152 (INADEQUATE VISUAL LOOKOUT), AND FAILURE OF THE TOWER CONTROLLER TO PROVIDE ADEQUATE SERVICE. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: HIGH TRAFFIC DENSITY, WHICH RESULTED IN FREQUENCY CONGESTION, AND FAILURE OF THE CESSNA 150 PILOT TO FOLLOW ESTABLISHED TRAFFIC PATTERN PROCEDURES.
Factual narrative
A MIDAIR COLLISION OF 2 ACFT OCCURRED AS THEY WERE ON FINAL APCH TO RWY 35L AT A CTLD ARPT. NUMEROUS INSTRUCTIONAL & NML ACFT OPNS WERE BEING CONDUCTED AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT. INITIALLY, THE PLTS OF BOTH ACFT WERE IN CTC WITH THE LCL CTLR & BOTH HAD RCVD APPROVAL FOR CLOSED TFC. THE PLT OF 1 ACFT (CESSNA 152, N94808) RCVD CLNC FOR A TOUCH & GO LNDG. THE PLT OF THE OTR ACFT (CESSNA 150, N9347U) HAD NOT COMMUNICATED WITH THE TWR FOR ABT 2 MIN BEFORE THE INCIDENT. ACCORDING TO A WITNESS, THE CESSNA 152 WAS ESTABLISHED ON FINAL APCH & THE CESSNA 150 PLT MADE A CONTINUOUS 180 DEG TURN FM DOWNWIND TO FINAL APCH. THE CESSNA 150 WAS RPRTD TO HAVE CONVERGED ON THE CESSNA 152 FROM ABOVE. DURING IMPACT, THE LNDG GEAR OF THE CESSNA 150 BROKE THE WINDSHIELD OF THE CESSNA 152. THE TWR CTLR DID NOT SEE THE COLLISION. WHEN SHE 1ST SIGHTED THE ACFT, THEY WERE SIDE-BY-SIDE. SHE THEN CLRD THE CESSNA 152 TO LAND & INSTRUCTED THE CESSNA 150 TO GO AROUND. SAMPLE OF CESSNA 150 PLT'S URINE (TAKEN NEXT DAY) SHOWED TRACE (72 NG/ML) OF CANNABINOID METABOLITE. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1989_FTW89IA168.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (midair collision). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2024 · Journal article (IJAAA)
Airspace Saturation and Midair Collision Risk: A Case Study at a Class D Airport
Near midair collisions are precursor events to actual collisions and may be an indicator of risk. While previous studies have used reports of near midair collisions to relate factors such as airspace …
- NASA NTRS 2023 · Presentation
The Viability of See-and-Avoid for Midair Collision Avoidance for Urban Air Mobility (UAM)
Urban Air Mobility (UAM) is an emerging aviation concept that could supplement today’s ground and air transportation systems.
- NASA NTRS 2023 · Presentation
The Viability of See-and-Avoid for Midair Collision Avoidance for UAM
Urban Air Mobility (UAM) is an emerging aviation concept that could supplement today’s ground and air transportation systems.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Other - Patent
Apparatus for aiding a pilot in avoiding a midair collision between aircraft
An apparatus for aiding a pilot in avoiding a midair collision between aircraft is described. A protected aircraft carries a transmitter, a transponder, a receiver, and a data processor; and an intrud…
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2018 · Journal article (IJAAA)
Evaluating Small UAS Near Midair Collision Risk Using AeroScope and ADS-B
As small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) continue to proliferate in the National Airspace System (NAS), near midair collisions are becoming more common.
- NASA NTRS 2011 · Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Midair collisions - The accidents, the systems, and the Realpolitik
Two midair collisions occurring in 1978 are described, and the air traffic control system and procedures in use at the time, human factors implications and political consequences of the accidents are …
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