Piper PA-44 accident near Panama City, Florida, February 21, 1986
On February 21, 1986 at about 1:59 pm local time, a Piper PA-44, registered N2217F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Panama City, Florida (Panama City airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person had minor injuries; 2 others were unhurt. 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
- February 21, 1986 · about 1:59 pm local time
- Place
- Panama City, Florida · Panama City · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 2 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-44 · all PA-44s on the register
- Registration
- N2217F · no longer on the register · serial 44-7995158
- 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 AIR TAXI FLIGHT HAD BEGUN THE INSTRUMENT ILS APPROACH AND THE PILOT STATED HE OBTAINED VISUAL CONTACT WITH THE RUNWAY LIGHTING SYSTEM. HE WAS STARTING TO LAND WHEN HE LOST ALL VISUAL CONTACT AND INITIATED A MISSED APPROACH. THE AIRCRAFT THEN VEERED LEFT OF THE CENTER OF THE RUNWAY AND CRASHED INTO THE GROUND ABOUT 75 FEET IN FRONT OF THE GLIDESLOPE BUILDING. THE AIRCRAFT THEN BOUNCED INTO THE AIR AND CRASHED INTO THE GLIDESLOPE BUILDING AND DESTROYED IT. THE PILOT RECALLED AFTER THE ACCIDENT THAT HE NEVER ESTABLISHED A POSITVE RATE OF CLIMB ON THE MISSED APPROACH.
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: 1,300 hours in all; 60 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 1,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,673 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, October 3, 1985; 52 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-E1A6D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Panama Aviation,Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: DKX Knoxville TN at 11:00 am
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 14, 6,004 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Wind: from 210° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:56 pm from PFN, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 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.