Piper PA-28-140 accident near Milton, Florida, September 23, 2002
On September 23, 2002 at about 11:30 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-140, registered N8828N, was substantially damaged in an accident near Milton, Florida (Milton Peter Prince Field). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A sheared mixture cable which resulted in a loss of engine power.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 23, 2002 · about 11:30 pm local time
- Place
- Milton, Florida · Milton Peter Prince Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-140 · all PA-28-140s on the register
- Registration
- N8828N · no longer on the register · serial 28-25677
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
After returning to the airport following a successful cross country flight the student did a touch and go. Shortly after the touch and go a flight instructor who had departed the airport in another airplane heard the student pilot state on the radio frequency that he was having engine trouble. The flight instructor asked the student pilot's position, then advised the student pilot to maintain glide airspeed and turn toward the airport. The flight instructor heard the student pilot state over the radio that he could not make it to the airport and was going into trees. The wreckage was found approximately 1,700 feet west southwest of the approach end of runway 36 in a wooded residential area. Examination of the airplane found the mixture control separated at or near the mounting bracket, adjacent to the carburetor. The inner cable strands were worn; the outer cable sleeve was corroded. Visual examination of the broken wire ends with the aid of an optical microscope revealed that all of the wires had severe wear, and that most were worn completely through before the final fracture.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 25 hours in all; 25 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 4 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,319 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 19, 2002; 6.2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MVC Monroeville AL at 10:55 pm
- Destination: 2R4 Milton FL
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 36, 3,700 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 0 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 29.87 inHg
- Observation at 10:53 pm from PNS, 26 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.