Cessna 172N accident near Big Pine Key, Florida, April 9, 1987
On April 9, 1987 at about 11:45 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N6328D, was substantially damaged in an accident near Big Pine Key, Florida. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were 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 9, 1987 · about 11:45 pm local time
- Place
- Big Pine Key, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N6328D · no longer on the register · serial 17272718
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT STATED THAT DURING CRUISE FLT THE ENG BEGAN TO RUN ROUGH. HE THEN ATTEMPTED TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM TO NO AVAIL. UNABLE TO MAINTAIN ALT HE ELECTED TO LAND THE ACFT ON A ROAD. WHILE TAXIING, BOTH WINGS COLLIDED WITH STREET SIGNS. POST CRASH EXAMINATION OF THE ACFT REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF PRE-IMPACT FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 280 hours in all; 50 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,896 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, February 14, 1987; 63 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EYW Key West FL at 11:05 pm
- Destination: HWO Hollywood FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 25,000 ft; scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:50 pm from EYW, 24 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N6328D the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.