Cessna 172 accident near St.Petersburg, Florida, April 26, 1987
On April 26, 1987 at about 7:08 pm local time, a Cessna 172, registered N217JA, was substantially damaged in an accident near St.Petersburg, Florida (Albert Whitted Municipal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 26, 1987 · about 7:08 pm local time
- Place
- St.Petersburg, Florida · Albert Whitted Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N217JA · registry record · serial 17275623
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE LANDING, THE ACFT FLOATED DOWN THE RWY AS THE RESULT OF EXCESSIVE AIRSPEED DURING THE APCH. THE PLT CONTINUED TO FLARE THE ACFT, & AS THE AIRSPEED BLED OFF, THE WINGS STALLED, RESULTING IN A HARD LANDING. THE ACFT THEN BEGAN TO PROPOISE, & ON THE THIRD LANDING, COLLAPSED THE NOSE GEAR. THE ACFT THEN SLID OFF THE RWY & CAME TO REST.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 122 hours in all; 10 in this make and model; 4 in the last 90 days; 64 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,082 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 25, 1987; 53 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,075 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D2J (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Jones Flying Service,Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: SRQ Sarasota FL at 6:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 2,800 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 010° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 13 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,500 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:08 pm from SPG
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number MIA87LA148.