Piper PA-44-180 accident near Daytona Beach, Florida, October 21, 2000
On October 21, 2000 at about 3:40 pm local time, a Piper PA-44-180, registered N928ER, was substantially damaged in an accident near Daytona Beach, 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
an inadvertent inflight collision with a bird during cruise flight that resulted in substantial damage to the airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 21, 2000 · about 3:40 pm local time
- Place
- Daytona Beach, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-44-180 · all PA-44-180s on the register
- Registration
- N928ER · no longer on the register · serial 4496026
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor stated that the aircraft was in level flight, at an altitude of about 2,000 feet, when a large bird impacted the outboard section of the right wing's leading edge. The instructor then declared an emergency, took control of the airplane from the student, and executing a precautionary landing at Spruce Creek, Florida. Post accident examination of the airplane revealed substantial damage to the aircraft as a result of the bird strike.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,282 hours in all; 89 in this make and model; 147 in the last 90 days; 65 in the last 30 days; 1,175 as pilot in command; 923 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,172 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 13, 2000; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,638 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming LO-360-A1H6 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EVB New Smyrna Beac FL at 2:00 pm
- Destination: DAB FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 12 knots, gusting 17
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,300 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 pm from DAB, 10 miles away
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.