Piper PA-23-250 accident near Brunswick, Georgia, March 1, 1985
On March 1, 1985 at about 11:40 pm local time, a Piper PA-23-250, registered N6429Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Brunswick, Georgia (Glynco Jetport airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. 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
- March 1, 1985 · about 11:40 pm local time
- Place
- Brunswick, Georgia · Glynco Jetport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-23-250 · all PA-23-250s on the register
- Registration
- N6429Y · no longer on the register · serial 274385
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- 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 HIS TAKEOFF ROLL WAS NORMAL, BUT JUST BEFORE HE ROTATED, THE NOSE GEAR COLLAPSED. NO DETERMINATION COULD BE MADE AS TO THE NATURE OF THE MALFUNCTION DURING A POST CRASH EXAM & RETRACTION TEST OF THE LANDING GEAR.
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, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 7,100 hours in all; 3,505 in this make and model; 424 in the last 90 days; 6,800 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection; 21 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,200 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: SAV Savannah GA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 7, 8,000 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:00 pm from SAV, 75 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.