Bellanca 7KCAB accident near New Smyrna Bch, Florida, March 4, 1986
On March 4, 1986 at about 5:30 pm local time, a Bellanca 7KCAB, registered N53805, was substantially damaged in an accident near New Smyrna Bch, Florida (New Smyrna Beach airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. 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 4, 1986 · about 5:30 pm local time
- Place
- New Smyrna Bch, Florida · New Smyrna Beach
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bellanca 7KCAB · all 7KCABs on the register
- Registration
- N53805 · no longer on the register · serial 545-75
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT STATED THAT JUST AFTER PICKING UP A BANNER, THE ACFT STALLED AND STARTED TO ROLL TO THE LEFT. THE PLT WAS UNABLE TO RECOVER BEFORE THE ACFT IMPACTED THE GROUND.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,613 hours in all; 42 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 1,400 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (expired)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,600 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 1985
- Maximum gross weight: 1,650 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-320-E2A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 3,200 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 13 knots, gusting 21
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,300 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:52 pm from DAB, 12 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.