Cessna 150G N2870S accident near Cavanaugh Bay, Idaho

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed during an attempt to execute a go-around with a tailwind condition, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and spin.

NTSB analysis

The pilot reported that he recalled making a normal approach to a grass strip runway with a known 8- to 10-knot tailwind, but he did not remember the accident itself. One of two witnesses reported that the airplane appeared to be flying slower than normal on final approach, and both reported seeing the airplane begin to go around and hearing the engine at high power. The airplane then pitched up into a nose high attitude and entered a rapid descent consistent with an aerodynamic stall and spin. The airplane wreckage was located 150 yards from the boundary of the grass strip, resting on its nose, with the tail oriented vertically. A postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for WPR11FA404 for the full record.