Piper PA-60 accident near Panama City, Florida, April 23, 1986
On April 23, 1986 at about 1:07 pm local time, a Piper PA-60, registered N90676, 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). 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
- April 23, 1986 · about 1:07 pm local time
- Place
- Panama City, Florida · Panama City · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-60 · all PA-60s on the register
- Registration
- N90676 · no longer on the register · serial 60-0331-122
- 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 ON HIS APCH HE HAD A GEAR DOWN & LOCKED INDICATION BUT ON LANDING ROLLOUT, THE NOSE GEAR COMPLETELY COLLAPSED AND THE ACFT SLID TO A STOP ON THE RWY. POST ACCIDENT EXAMINATION OF THE LANDING GEAR SYSTEM REVEALED THAT THE NOSE GEAR COLLAPSED DUE TO A HYDRAULIC LEAK IN THE NOSE GEAR ACTUATOR.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,074 hours in all; 749 in this make and model; 211 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,800 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 1, 1986
- Maximum gross weight: 5,500 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1F5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TLH Tallahassee FL at 12:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 32, 6,308 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:07 pm from TLH, 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.