Rockwell 500-S accident near Jacksonville, Florida, May 8, 1988
On May 8, 1988 at about 4:30 pm local time, a Rockwell 500-S, registered N57222, was substantially damaged in an accident near Jacksonville, Florida (Jacksonville Int'L airport). It was a personal 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 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
- May 8, 1988 · about 4:30 pm local time
- Place
- Jacksonville, Florida · Jacksonville Int'L
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Rockwell 500-S
- Registration
- N57222 · no longer on the register · serial 3260
- 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 HE HAD JUST BROUGHT THE ACFT TO A STOP & HAD SHUT DOWN BOTH ENGS. AT THAT TIME, THE LT. GEAR COLLAPSED. MAINTENANCE CREW FOUND THAT ONE OF THE ACTUATING CYLS WAS OUT OF ADJUSTMENT & THE BUNGEE CORDS WERE WEAK. THE GEAR ASSY ITSELF APPEARED TO BE LACKING IN LUBRICATION. WITNESSES STATED THE PLT APPEARED TO BE IN A HURRY AS HE TAXIED TO THE RAMP. THEY SAW THE ACFT MAKE TWO VERY SHARP TURNS, WITH THE INSIDE WHEEL BEING STOPPED DURING THE TURN & THE ACFT WAS PERMITTED TO PIVOT ON THE STOPPED WHEEL DURING THE TURN.
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: 3,547 hours in all; 192 in this make and model; 21 in the last 90 days; 3,307 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,000 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 31, 1988; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 10,000 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Air Center, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: APT Jasper TN
- Destination: JAX Jacksonville FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 110° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:50 pm from JAX, 1 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 N57222 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.