Cessna 421 accident near Miami, Florida, February 11, 1982
On February 11, 1982 at about 10:46 am local time, a Cessna 421, registered N24CC, was destroyed in an accident near Miami, Florida. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 11, 1982 · about 10:46 am local time
- Place
- Miami, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 421 · all 421s on the register
- Registration
- N24CC · no longer on the register · serial 421-0043
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE FLIGHT DEPARTED THE TAMIAMI AIRPORT, MIAMI, FLORIDA AT APPROXIMATELY 2100 EST ON FEBRUARY 9, 1982. THERE WAS NO FLIGHT PLAN FILED AND THE PURPOSE, DESTINATION, AND LOCATIONS OF POSSIBLE ENROUTE STOPS WERE NOT DETERMINED. THE NEXT REPORTED COMMUNICATION WITH THE FLIGHT WAS AT 0533 ON FEBRUARY 11, 1982 WHEN THE FOLLOWING TRANSMISSION WAS RECORDED ON THE MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT'S CONTROL TOWER FREQUENCY: "MAYDAY-MAYDAY-MAYDAY TWIN CESSNA 421CC GOING IN WEST OF MIAMI, GOING IN WEST OF MIAMI." THE AIRCRAFT INITIALLY IMPACTED THE TERRAIN WHILE ON AN EASTERLY HEADING IN A NEAR LEVEL ATTITUDE. IT BOUNCED AND IMPACTED THE SECOND TIME IN A 40 DEGREE NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE AND FLIPPED INVERTED. THE WING FUEL TANKS RUPTURED IN THE CRASH BUT THE MAIN TANKS WERE INTACT AND FOUND VOID OF FUEL. BOTH PROPELLERS SEPARATED DURING THE CRASH SEQUENCE AND THE BLADE DISTORTIONS WERE NOT INDICATIVE OF POWER AT THE TIME OF IMPACT.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,850 hours in all; 560 in this make and model; 2,440 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,096 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 19 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,800 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental GTSIO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 300° at 3 knots
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 154°F (68°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:40 am from MIA, 11 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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.
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.