Cessna 402B incident near West Palm Beach, Florida, July 24, 1985
On July 24, 1985 at about 11:14 pm local time, a Cessna 402B, registered N1554G, suffered minor damage in an incident near West Palm Beach, Florida (Palm Beach Internation airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. 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 incident. 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
- July 24, 1985 · about 11:14 pm local time
- Place
- West Palm Beach, Florida · Palm Beach Internation · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 402B · all 402Bs on the register
- Registration
- N1554G · registry record · serial 402B1074
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AIRCRAFT EXPERIENCED UNSAFE RIGHT MAIN GEAR INDICATION SEVERAL DAYS PRIOR TO THE INCIDENT. MECHANICS FOUND A DAMAGED MICRO SWITCH MOUNTING PLATE WHICH THEY REPAIRED ENOUGH TO HOLD UNTIL A NEW PLATE COULD BE ORDERED AND INSTALLED. ON DAY OF INCIDENT PILOT RECEIVED UNSAFE RIGHT MAIN GEAR INDICATION AND UPON LANDING PLACED A SIDE LOAD ON THE GEAR TO CHECK IT FOR SECURITY. AT THIS TIME A LOUD BANG WAS HEARD FROM THE AREA OF THE RIGHT MAIN GEAR AND THE GEAR BEGAN TO COLLAPSE. A BALKED LANDING WAS PERFORMED AND ON THE SECOND ATTEMPT TO LAND THE RIGHT GEAR AGAIN BEGAN TO COLLAPSE. THE PILOT FLEW THE AIRCRAFT BACK TO HIS DEPARTURE POINT AND ON LANDING THE RIGHT GEAR COLLAPSED. POST CRASH INSPECTION OF THE AIRCRAFT REVEALED THE RIGHT GEAR OVER CENTER BRACE HAD FAILED ALONG WITH ITS MOUNTING BOL.T METALLURGICAL EXAMINATION OF THE FAILED COMPONENTS REVEALED THEY FAILED DUE TO OVERSTRESS WITH NO INDICATIONS OF PREVIOUS CRACKS OR PRESENCE OF CORROSION.
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; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,940 hours in all; 525 in this make and model; 107 in the last 90 days; 1,940 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,479 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 9, 1985; 99 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TS10520E (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Chandelle Aviation CORP.
The flight
- Destination: APF Naples FL
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 13, 6,930 ft by 19 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 010° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 25,000 ft; scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:21 pm from PBI, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.