Piper PA-30 accident near Brooksville, Florida, May 15, 1999
On May 15, 1999 at about 4:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-30, registered N8055Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Brooksville, Florida (Hernando County airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The certified flight instructor's failure to recover from a porpoise during landing and his failure to maintain directional control.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 15, 1999 · about 4:00 pm local time
- Place
- Brooksville, Florida · Hernando County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-30 · all PA-30s on the register
- Registration
- N8055Y · registry record · serial 30-1168
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor and private pilot arrived at their destination after an uneventful flight. Upon touchdown on the runway, the airplane porpoised, ballooned, and yawed to the left with the left wing low and the nose in a nose high attitude. The instructor took control of the aircraft and during the second landing attempt the right main gear collapsed. The right wing and propeller struck the runway. The airplane subsequently departed the left edge of the runway at an angle of approximately 45 degrees. No mechanical problems were reported by the pilot.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,276 hours in all; 212 in this make and model; 41 in the last 90 days; 1,209 as pilot in command; 569 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,114 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 23, 1998; 19 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,780 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming I0-360-CIC (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ORL Orlando FL at 3:30 pm
- Destination: BKV
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 9, 7,001 ft by 50 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 pm from BKV
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.