Rockwell 560E accident near Matacumbe Key, Florida, September 30, 1983
On September 30, 1983 at about 10:00 pm local time, a Rockwell 560E, registered N70C, was destroyed in an accident near Matacumbe Key, Florida. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured. 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
- September 30, 1983 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Matacumbe Key, Florida
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Rockwell 560E
- Registration
- N70C · no longer on the register · serial 549
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT CRASHED IN THE WATER IN AN ISOLATED AREA OF THE FLORIDA BAY WHILE IN A NEAR INVERTED, LEFT WING LOW, NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE & AT A HIGH RATE OF DESCENT WITH SLOW FORWARD SPEED. THE LANDING GEAR WERE DOWN & LOCKED, & THE FLAPS WERE EXTENDED ABOUT 10 DEGS. EXAMINATION OF THE CARGO DOOR REVEALED EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST THAT IT WAS NOT HINGED TO THE ACFT DURING IMPACT. THE PURPOSE OF THE FLT IS STILL UNDER INVESTIGATION BY OTHER GOV'T AGENCIES.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,525 hours in all; 35 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 1,325 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 6,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming GO-480-C1B6 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 100° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Observation at 9:46 pm from EYW, 55 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.