Rockwell 690A accident near Hilliard, Florida, June 24, 1987
On June 24, 1987 at about 6:35 am local time, a Rockwell 690A, registered N57169, was destroyed in an accident near Hilliard, Florida. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed. 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
- June 24, 1987 · about 6:35 am local time
- Place
- Hilliard, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Rockwell 690A
- Registration
- N57169 · no longer on the register · serial 11203
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
RADAR DATA INDICATED THE ACFT CLIMBED NORMALLY TO 9,200 FEET AT WHICH TIME SOME MANUEVER WAS PERFORMED WITH THE ACFT. THE ACFT THEN ENTERED A NEAR VERTICAL DIVE AND THE LAST RADAR HIT WAS AT 6,900 FEET. EXAMINATION OF THE ACFT REVEALED IT EXPERIENCED AN INFLIGHT STRUCTUAL BREAKUP AND THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE TO INDICATE PREBREAKUP FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION OF THE ACFT STRUCTURE, FLIGHT CONTROLS, ENGINES, ENGINE MOUNTS, AUTOPILOT, OR SYSTEMS. THE OPERATOR REPORTED ONE EMPLOYEE OVERHEARD THE PLT AND PASSENGER TALK ABOUT ROLLING THE ACFT PRIOR TO DEPARTURE, AND TWO COMPANY EMPLOYEES REPORTED BEING ONBOARD WHEN THE PILOT HAD ROLLED IT ON PRIOR OCCASIONS. ONE OF THESE WAS AT NIGHT.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,129 hours in all; 170 in this make and model; 197 in the last 90 days; 61 in the last 30 days; 5,929 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,970 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 17, 1987; 14 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 10,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE331-5-251K (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire in flight and on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: JAX Jacksonville FL at 6:29 am
- Destination: ATL Atlanta FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 am from JAX, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.