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GAA15CA175

2015-07-09 · Renton, Washington, United States · Minor · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport RNT

Current FAA registration · N12MM

Make / Model
CESSNA 150J
Year of manufacture
1968 · 47 years old at event
Engine
CONT MOTOR 0-200 SERIES (100 hp)
Seats / Engines
2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19681121
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A05278

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed, which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack and a subsequent aerodynamic stall/spin.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that while conducting banner towing operations, after the airplane passed through the banner pick up gates, he applied full throttle and pitched the nose of the airplane up. Once the airspeed reached 40 miles per hour (MPH) he looked back to ensure that the banner pickup was successful. The pilot stated that when he turned back around the airspeed had decreased, simultaneously the banner began "pulling", which led to an increase in drag, and the airplane exceeded its critical angle of attack. The airplane aerodynamically stalled, descended, and impacted the ground. The airplane impacted the ground left wing first, and sustained substantial damage to both wings and the fuselage. The pilot reported there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that while conducting banner towing operations, after the airplane passed through the banner pick up gates, he applied full throttle and pitched the nose of the airplane up. Once the airspeed reached 40 miles per hour (MPH) he looked back to ensure that the banner pickup was successful. The pilot stated that when he turned back around the airspeed had decreased, simultaneously the banner began "pulling", which led to an increase in drag, and the airplane exceeded its critical angle of attack. The airplane aerodynamically stalled, descended, and impacted the ground. The airplane impacted the ground left wing first, and sustained substantial damage to both wings and the fuselage. The pilot reported there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Airspeed-Not attained/maintained - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Angle of attack-Not attained/maintained - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2015_GAA15CA175.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Search this event elsewhere

External sources are reported, not agency: signal that something happened, not fact about what happened.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (stall). All research papers