Cessna 140 accident near New Smyrna Beach, Florida, September 26, 2020
On September 26, 2020 at about 1:45 pm local time, a 1946 Cessna 140, registered N89476, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near New Smyrna Beach, Florida (Massey Ranch Airpark airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s decision to depart from a non-suitable surface, which resulted in a loss of directional control during takeoff roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 26, 2020 · about 1:45 pm local time
- Place
- New Smyrna Beach, Florida · Massey Ranch Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 140, built 1946 · all 140s on the register
- Registration
- N89476 · registry record · serial 8507
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During the takeoff roll from a grass area adjacent the paved runway surface, the airplane’s left main landing gear wheel struck a “muddy pothole.” The airplane’s nose then veered down and to the left and the pilot lost directional control of the airplane. The airplane subsequently struck a fence, and the right wing impacted a tree substantially damaging it. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
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 takeoff defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Runway/land/takeoff/taxi surface › Soft surface › Decision related to condition
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Tree(s) › Contributed to outcome
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot, remote
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: glider; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 729 hours in all; 402 in this make and model; 81 in the last 90 days; 17 in the last 30 days; 651 as pilot in command; 85 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,748 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 8, 2019; 156 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,450 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200A (piston); 3,077 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: X50 Edgewater FL at 1:45 pm
- Destination: 7FL6 Port Orange FL
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 36, 4,300 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: a few clouds at 3,200 ft
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 77°F (25°C)
- Altimeter: 2997.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 pm from DAB, 13 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 |
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 docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site 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 ERA20LA334.