Piper PA34 accident near Hollywood, Florida, August 19, 2016
On August 19, 2016 at about 3:30 pm local time, a 1973 Piper PA34, registered N16499, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering near Hollywood, Florida. 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
Maintenance personnel’s failure to comply with an airworthiness directive for the propeller, which resulted in a propeller hub failure due to fatigue.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 19, 2016 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Hollywood, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA34 200, built 1973 · all PA34s on the register
- Registration
- N16499 · no longer on the register · serial 34-7350132
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During an instructional flight in a multiengine airplane, the pilot receiving instruction had just completed a right turn at an altitude of 3,300 ft mean sea level when the flight instructor heard a loud noise and saw something separate from the right engine. The flight instructor took the controls but was unable to maintain altitude with one engine operating and performed a forced landing into a swamp. Examination of the wreckage revealed that the right engine had separated from its mounts, one propeller blade was missing, and the right propeller hub was fractured. Metallurgical examination of the propeller hub revealed a fatigue fracture along a grease-fitting hole. An airworthiness directive had been issued about 8 years before the accident that required initial (within 50 flight hours) and repetitive (every 100 flight hours) eddy current inspection of the area around the lubrication holes of the propeller hub blade sockets. The right propeller had been overhauled about 14 months before the accident and had accrued about 440 hours at the time of the accident. The airplane's most recent 100-hour inspection (which included inspection of both propellers) occurred about 3 months before the accident. Review of maintenance records did not reveal any documentation that the airworthiness directive was complied with on the overhauled right propeller hub.
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
What happened, in order
- Part(s) separation from AC during maneuvering defining event
- Powerplant sys/comp malf/fail during maneuvering
- Off-field or emergency landing during emergency descent
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Maintenance › Scheduled/routine maintenance › Maintenance personnel
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft propeller/rotor › Propeller system › Propeller hub section › Failure
Flight instructor
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,995 hours in all; 1,150 in this make and model; 135 in the last 90 days; 89 in the last 30 days; 9,300 as pilot in command; 8,500 on instruments
- Last flight review: February 2, 2015
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Pilot-Rated Passenger
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 429 hours in all; 40 in this make and model; 86 in the last 90 days; 50 in the last 30 days; 335 as pilot in command; 57 on instruments
- Last flight review: June 22, 2016
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,160 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 27, 2016; 61 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,999 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Lycoming IO-360-C1E6 (piston); 7,160 hours total
- Engine 2: Lycoming LIO-360-C1E6 (piston); 7,160 hours total
- Operator: American Flight Training LLC
The flight
- Departed from: HWO Hollywood FL at 3:00 pm
- Destination: HWO Hollywood FL
- Flight plan: none
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 30.05 inHg
- Observation at 3:55 pm from KHWO, 19 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
9 documents, released by the NTSB on December 20, 2018. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 2 | FAA Inspector Statement | PDF, 3 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Excerpts from Maintenance Records | PDF, 3 pages | View Download |
| 4 | FAA Ad 2008-13-28 | PDF, 7 pages | View Download |
| 5 | FAA Ad 2009-22-03 | PDF, 13 pages | View Download |
| 6 | Photo Array | PDF, 3 pages | View Download |
| 7 | Materials Laboratory Factual Report | PDF, 11 pages | View Download |
| 8 | Statement of Party Representatives to NTSB Investigation | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 9 | Evidence Control Form | PDF, 4 pages | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
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.