Piper PA-28-140 accident near Pahokee, Florida, March 11, 1985
On March 11, 1985 at about 1:33 am local time, a Piper PA-28-140, registered N44480, was destroyed in an accident near Pahokee, Florida (Palm Beach County Glades airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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 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 11, 1985 · about 1:33 am local time
- Place
- Pahokee, Florida · Palm Beach County Glades · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-140 · all PA-28-140s on the register
- Registration
- N44480 · no longer on the register · serial 287425415
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT STATED THAT WHEN HE SMELLED SMOKE IN THE CABIN, HE LANDED & TAXIED TO THE RAMP AREA, THEN A FIRE ERUPTED. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE FIRE STARTED WHERE AN ELECTRICAL SHORT OCCURRED NEAR THE APU PLUG (IN THE AREA OF THE AFT BAGGAGE COMPARTMENT).
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 340 hours in all; 340 in this make and model; 10 in the last 90 days; 300 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,620 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 1, 1984; 83 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2A (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: PHK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 4,620 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 110° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.