Piper PA-20 accident near Ocean Springs, Mississippi, May 15, 1988
On May 15, 1988 at about 2:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-20, registered N7682K, was substantially damaged in an accident near Ocean Springs, Mississippi (Gulfpark airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 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
- May 15, 1988 · about 2:00 pm local time
- Place
- Ocean Springs, Mississippi · Gulfpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-20 · all PA-20s on the register
- Registration
- N7682K · no longer on the register · serial 20-504
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE INSTRUCTOR STATED THAT THEY WERE ON THEIR THIRD TOUCH AND GO AND HAD MADE A WHEEL LANDING, AND JUST AS SHE STARTED TO RETRACT THE FLAPS, THE AIRCRAFT MADE AN APRX 30 DEGREE TURN OFF THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. SHE THEN STATED THAT NO MATTER HOW MUCH CORRECTION WAS MADE TO THE LEFT, THE ACFT STILL VEERED RIGHT, STRUCK A FENCE, FLIPPED OVER THE FENCE AND CAME TO REST INVERTED.
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: 1,416 hours in all; 22 in this make and model; 53 in the last 90 days; 1,344 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,628 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 13, 1988
- Maximum gross weight: 1,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Gulfport MS at 1:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 35, 3,500 ft by 50 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:47 pm from GPT, 20 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
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.