Beech G18S accident near Hollywood, Florida, April 14, 1983
On April 14, 1983 at about 8:08 pm local time, a Beech G18S, registered N444PV, was destroyed in an accident near Hollywood, Florida (Ft. Lauderdale Hw. Intl. airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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
- April 14, 1983 · about 8:08 pm local time
- Place
- Hollywood, Florida · Ft. Lauderdale Hw. Intl. · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech G18S · all G18Ss on the register
- Registration
- N444PV · no longer on the register · serial BA598
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT STATED THAT START, TAXI & TAKEOFF WERE NORMAL UNTIL AFTER HE RAISED THE GEAR HANDLE & THE ACFT WAS CLIMBING THRU APRX 150 TO 200 FT AGL. AT THAT TIME, HE NOTICED THAT THE LEFT ENG RPM WAS DECAYING. THERE WAS INSUFFICIENT RWY REMAINING TO ABORT, SO HE ELECTED TO FEATHER THE LEFT ENG & CONTINUE THE TAKEOFF. THE LEFT PROP STOPPED ROTATING BEFORE IT FEATHERED. WITH ADDITIONAL DRAG FROM THE LEFT PROP, THE ACFT WOULD NOT CLIMB OR MAINTAIN LEVEL FTL. THE PLT WAS ABLE TO FLY THE ACFT OVER BUILDINGS & OTHER OBSTACLES (UP TO 75 FT TALL) NEAR THE ARPT BOUNDRY. JUST BEYOND THESE OBSTACLES, THE ACFT STRUCK TREES & CRASHED IN A WOODED AREA. THERE WAS A SMALL POST-IMPACT FIRE NEAR THE ACCESSORY SECTION OF THE RIGHT ENG. AN EXAM & TEARDOWN OF THE LEFT ENG REVEALED THAT AN IMPELLER SHAFT BEARING, PRATT & WHITNEY PART NUMBER 288943, HAD FAILED & ALLOWED THE IMPELLER TO RUB AGAINST THE DIFFUSER. NO OTHER PREIMPACT FAILURES WERE FOUND.
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; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 5,810 hours in all; 800 in this make and model; 36 in the last 90 days; 5,695 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,463 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, December 21, 1982; 67 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 9,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W R-985-14B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Destination: ZWC Walker'S Cay Bh
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 9L, 8,048 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 3,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:10 pm from FLL, 50 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.