Mooney M-18C accident near Sugar Loaf Key, Florida, May 10, 1984
On May 10, 1984 at about 4:10 pm local time, a Mooney M-18C, registered N487M, was destroyed in an accident near Sugar Loaf Key, Florida. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 10, 1984 · about 4:10 pm local time
- Place
- Sugar Loaf Key, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M-18C · all M-18Cs on the register
- Registration
- N487M · no longer on the register · serial 241
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT WAS OBSERVED MAKING SEVERAL PASSES OVER A FRIENDS HOUSE. AT THE END OF THE THIRD PASS DURING, A CLIMBING LEFT TURN, THE RIGHT WING SEPARATED FROM THE ACFT. INSPECTION OF THE WRECKAGE REVEALED WOOD ROT IN THE MAIN WING SPAR. THE LAST KNOWN INSPECTION FOR WOOD AND GLUE JOINT DETERIORATION WAS PERFORMED IN 1982 BY THE PREVIOUS OWNER.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,664 hours in all; 129 in this make and model; 43 in the last 90 days; 26 in the last 30 days; 4,254 as pilot in command; 2,585 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 837 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 1984; 31 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 850 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental A65-8-12 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EYW Key West FL at 3:40 pm
- Destination: FXE Ft.Lauderdale FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 24,000 ft; scat at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:39 pm from EYW, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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 MIA84FA164.