Grumman G-73T accident near Miami, Florida, December 19, 2005
On December 19, 2005 at about 7:39 pm local time, a Grumman G-73T, registered N2969, was destroyed in an accident near Miami, Florida (Miami Seaplane Base airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 20 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The in-flight failure and separation of the right wing during normal flight, which resulted from (1) the failure of the Chalk's Ocean Airways maintenance program to identify and properly repair fatigue cracks in the right wing and (2) the failure of the Federal Aviation Administration to detect and correct deficiencies in the company's maintenance program.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 19, 2005 · about 7:39 pm local time
- Place
- Miami, Florida · Miami Seaplane Base · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 20 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Grumman G-73T · all G-73Ts on the register
- Registration
- N2969 · registry record · serial J27
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The Safety Board's full report is available at http://www.ntsb.gov/publictn/publictn.htm. The Aircraft Accident Report number is NTSB/AAR-07/04. On December 19, 2005, about 1439 eastern standard time, a Grumman Turbo Mallard (G-73T) amphibious airplane, N2969, operated by Flying Boat, Inc., doing business as Chalk's Ocean Airways flight 101, crashed into a shipping channel adjacent to the Port of Miami, Florida, shortly after takeoff from the Miami Seaplane Base. Flight 101 was a regularly scheduled passenger flight to Bimini, Bahamas, with 2 flight crewmembers and 18 passengers on board. The airplane's right wing separated during flight. All 20 people aboard the airplane were killed, and the airplane was destroyed. Flight 101 was operating under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121 on a visual flight rules flight plan. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,830 hours in all; 1,630 in this make and model; 203 in the last 90 days; 85 in the last 30 days; 1,330 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Flight time: 1,420 hours in all; 71 in this make and model; 71 in the last 90 days; 58 in the last 30 days; 1,200 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: November 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 31,226.3 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, November 1, 2005; 11 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 14,100 lb
- Seats: 17
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Flying Boat INC
The flight
- Departed from: X44 Miami FL at 7:35 pm
- Destination: Bimini
- Flight plan: VFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: ovct at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 18 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N2969 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.