ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 178481
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
| Date: | Monday 10 August 2015 |
| Time: | 00:35 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-28R-200 Arrow II |
| Owner/operator: | Palm Beach Flight Training |
| Registration: | N54380 |
| MSN: | 28R-7435092 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1973 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 9029 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming IO-360-C1C |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Florida Keys, Gulf of Mexico near Marathon, FL -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Marathon, FL (MTH) |
| West Palm Beach, FL (LNA) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
According to the airplane owner, the noninstrument-rated pilot had rented the airplane in Palm Beach, Florida, 1 day before the accident and was not scheduled to return the airplane until the day after the accident. The rental agreement prohibited night flight to or from the Florida Keys. However, about 4 hours after sunset on the night of the accident, the pilot departed an airport on the Florida Keys. Airport security video recorded the airplane becoming airborne, climbing, and beginning to turn right. A witness reported seeing the airplane descending into the water with the engines running. The flight was conducted on a dark, moonless night, and in a sparsely populated area of Florida near the water. No visible horizon could be seen on the video. Based on the dark night conditions, the lack of visual reference at the time of the accident, the pilot’s low overall flight time, and the pilot’s lack of an instrument rating, it is likely that he became spatially disoriented, which led to the subsequent descent into water.
Examination of the wreckage revealed a right wing low attitude at the time of the impact, which was consistent with the pilot maintaining the right turn seen in the security video recordings. Examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or abnormalities that would have precluded normal operation.
Probable Cause: The pilot's failure to maintain a positive climb rate after takeoff due to spatial disorientation while turning after takeoff in dark night conditions in a sparsely populated area, which resulted in the airplane’s descent into water. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's decision to depart on a night flight over water.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
FAA register: http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=N54380
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 28 January 2015 | N54380 | Palm Beach Flight Training Corporation | 0 | Palm Beach County Park/Lantana Airport (KLNA), West Palm Beach, FL | |
min |
| Mid-air collision | ||||||
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 10-Aug-2015 15:19 | Geno | Added |
| 10-Aug-2015 21:30 | Geno | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Nature, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 11-Aug-2015 09:56 | Anon. | Updated [Damage] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:30 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 01-Dec-2017 15:08 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:
| ASN Home | Send Correction / Feedback |
| FSF Home | Disclaimer | Copyright |
| Contact Us | Privacy Policy |
| Press / Media |
CONNECT WITH US:
©2024 Flight Safety Foundation