LAX94LA316

Factual narrative

On July 11, 1994, at 1630 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 152, N93839, nosed over during the landing roll after exiting runway 12 at Thermal Airport, Thermal, California. The pilot was conducting a visual flight rules personal flight. The airplane, registered to and operated by Air Technical College, Riverside, California, sustained substantial damage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. Neither the United Kingdom certificated private pilot (United States student pilot) occupying the left front seat nor the certificated private pilot occupying the right front seat was injured. The flight originated at Redlands, California, at an undetermined time. The flight departed Imperial County Airport, Imperial, California, about 1530 hours. Neither the operator nor the pilots reported this accident. A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) operations inspector reported this accident to the National Transportation Safety Board on August 11, 1994. The operator submitted the required aircraft accident report. He reported that the pilot rented the airplane for a round robin personal cross-country flight. The pilot intended to land at Imperial County Airport and Thermal Airport. The operator said that during the landing flare at Thermal Airport, the airplane drifted off the centerline. During the drift, the airplane's wheel caught the runway edge and veered into the loose dirt. The airplane's nose wheel sunk into the soft terrain and flipped over. The operator also indicated in the accident report that the airplane did not experience any preexisting malfunctions or failures. The FAA inspector reported that the second pilot noted in the accident report form was flying the airplane and occupied the left front seat. The right front seat pilot rented the airplane from the operator. At the time of the accident the left seat pilot held a United Kingdom private pilot certificate and a U.S. student pilot certificate based on a U.S. medical certificate. The right seat pilot had obtained a U.S. private pilot certificate. The day after the accident, the left seat pilot requested and received a special purpose restricted private pilot certificate. The FAA issued the certificate based on his foreign private pilot certificate. Neither of the pilots submitted the required aircraft accident report. Safety Board investigators were unable to contact either pilot. The left seat pilot returned to the United Kingdom the day after the accident. DURING THE LAST LANDING, THE PILOT FAILED TO COMPENSATE FOR THE CROSSWIND CONDITIONS AND ALLOWED THE AIRPLANE TO DRIFT TO THE LEFT. THE LEFT WHEEL CAUGHT THE EDGE OF THE RUNWAY AND THE AIRPLANE SUBSEQUENTLY NOSED OVER. THE OPERATOR REPORTED THAT THE AIRPLANE DID NOT EXPERIENCE ANY PREEXISTING MALFUNCTIONS OR FAILURES. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12