Republic RC-3 accident near Lake Placid, Florida, March 9, 1985
On March 9, 1985 at about 11:15 pm local time, a Republic RC-3, registered N6294K, was destroyed in an accident near Lake Placid, Florida. 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 9, 1985 · about 11:15 pm local time
- Place
- Lake Placid, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Republic RC-3 · all RC-3s on the register
- Registration
- N6294K · registry record · serial 507
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT HEARD A LOUD NOISE & NOTICED THAT A FIRE HAD IMMEDIATELY STARTED IN THE ENG COMPARTMENT. HE MADE AN EMERGENCY LANDING ON A NEARBY LAKE; HOWEVER, THE AMPHIBIOUS ACFT CONTINUED BURNING & WAS DESTROYED. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE FIRE HAD STARTED AFTER A CONNECTING ROD BOLT HAD FAILED & THE ROD WENT THRU THE ENG CASE.
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: 8,300 hours in all; 3,000 in this make and model; 45 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 2,980 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Franklin B9F (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire in flight and on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 8X5 Lake Placid FL at 11:10 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 7,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 61°F (16°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.