Piper PA46 accident near Williston, Florida, June 15, 2020
On June 15, 2020 at about 5:08 pm local time, a 2019 Piper PA46, registered N117PR, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Williston, Florida (Williston Municipal Airport). It was a personal 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 pilot’s failure to maintain directional control while landing with a crosswind, which resulted in a runway excursion and nose landing gear collapse.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 15, 2020 · about 5:08 pm local time
- Place
- Williston, Florida · Williston Municipal Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA46 600TP, built 2019 · all PA46s on the register
- Registration
- N117PR · registry record · serial 4698117
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot received his private pilot certificate about 2 ½ months before the accident. The pilot then transitioned to the accident airplane, receiving training from an instructor who had completed the factory-authorized training. At the time of the accident, the pilot had a total flight experience of 99 hours, of which 54 hours were in the accident airplane; however, the accident flight was the pilot’s first flight in the accident airplane without a flight instructor. While landing at the airport after a cross-country flight, the airplane departed the right side of the runway onto a grassy area, and the nose landing gear collapsed. Immediately after the accident, the pilot reported to an off-duty law enforcement officer that a gust of wind “got him” and also reported to police officers that a “strong gust of wind” caused the airplane to veer off the runway. In his subsequent written statement, he stated that the nosewheel steering system was unresponsive and contained a manufacturing defect. Although the pilot claimed that there was an issue with the nosewheel steering system, postaccident examination of the airplane did not reveal any preimpact mechanical malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. Flight control continuity was established for all flight controls, and nosewheel steering continuity was confirmed. The nose landing gear skid marks on the runway traveled left, then right before exiting the runway. The recorded wind at the airport about 7 minutes after the accident was a left quartering headwind at 11 knots. Given the pilot’s statements regarding the gust of wind, the postaccident examination, and the pilot’s limited experience in the accident airplane, it is likely that the pilot failed to control the airplane while landing in crosswind conditions.
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
- Loss of control on ground during landing (landing roll) defining event
- Runway excursion during landing (landing roll)
- Landing gear collapse during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 99 hours in all; 54 in this make and model; 57 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 65 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 26, 2020
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 55 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 23, 2020; 46 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,000 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W Canada PT6A-42A (turboprop); 101 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ABI Abiline TX at 2:00 pm
- Destination: X60 Williston FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 5, 6,669 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,800 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.10 inHg
- Observation at 5:15 pm from X60
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ERA20LA230.