Piper PA-34-200T incident near Tampa, Florida, July 21, 1988
On July 21, 1988 at about 12:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-34-200T, registered N47506, suffered minor damage in an incident near Tampa, Florida (Vandenberg airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 incident. 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
- July 21, 1988 · about 12:00 pm local time
- Place
- Tampa, Florida · Vandenberg
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-34-200T · all PA-34-200Ts on the register
- Registration
- N47506 · no longer on the register · serial 34-7870001
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
SHORTLY AFTER DEPG, THE PLT ELECTED TO RTRN TO THE ARPT FOR PAPERWORK HE HAD FORGOTTEN. HE RPRTD THE APCH & TOUCHDOWN WERE NORMAL, BUT DRG THE LNDG ROLL, THE LEFT MAIN GEAR COLLAPSED. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT VEERED OFF THE RWY & HIT A RWY LGT BEFORE STOPPING. AN EXAM OF THE LEFT GEAR REVEALED THE LEFT MAIN LNDG GEAR TRUNNION HAD FAILED NR THE FILLET WEB DUE TO FATIGUE. THE TRUNNION HAD BEEN IN SVC FOR 1255 HRS OF OPN. PIPER SVC BULLETIN #787A, DATED 8/15/85, RECOMMENDED THAT AFTER 1000 HRS OF SVC, THE TRUNNIONS BE INSPECTED AT INTERVALS NOT TO EXCEED 100 HRS OF OPN UNTIL REPLACED. INSPECTIONS WERE TO BE MADE WITH A 10 POWER MAGNIFYING GLASS AFTER PAINT & DIRT WERE REMOVED. THE TRUNNION HAD BEEN INSPECTED AT 55 FLT HRS BEFORE THE ACDNT, BUT RPRTDLY, THE OPERATOR FAILED TO PROPERLY REMOVE THE PAINT & DIRT BEFORE THE INSPECTION.
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; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 926 hours in all; 336 in this make and model; 88 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days; 848 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,255 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 10, 1988; 55 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-360-E (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Trans Air Direct
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 3,260 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 9,000 ft; scat at 900 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:52 am from TPA, 10 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.
Other NTSB records under N47506 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.