Piper PA-34-200T accident near St. Petersburg, Florida, July 18, 1988
On July 18, 1988 at about 5:44 pm local time, a Piper PA-34-200T, registered N11RJ, was destroyed in an accident near St. Petersburg, Florida. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 7 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
- July 18, 1988 · about 5:44 pm local time
- Place
- St. Petersburg, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 7 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-34-200T · all PA-34-200Ts on the register
- Registration
- N11RJ · no longer on the register · serial 34-7970002
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE 27 YR OLD PLT PURCHASED THE ACFT ABOUT 2 WEEKS BEFORE THE ACCIDENT & HAD RECEIVED HIS MULTI-ENG RATING ABOUT 3 WEEKS BEFORE. HIS TOTAL MULTI ENG TIME WAS ABOUT 35 HRS. NEARING HIS DESTINATION, 1 ENG QUIT. A FEW MOMENTS LATER, THE OTHER QUIT & THE PLT DITCHED THE ACFT IN TAMPA BAY. THE PLT STATED THAT HE HAD ABOUT 110 TO 115 GALS OF FUEL WHEN HE LEFT THE TAMPA AREA FOR A FLT TO THE BAHAMAS ISLANDS. HE DID NOT PURCHASE ANY OTHER FUEL DURING THE ROUND TRIP & HE DID SOME MANEUVERING TO AVOID ENROUTE WX. AFTER THE ACFT WAS RAISED FROM THE WATER, ONLY RESIDUAL FUEL WAS FOUND IN THE FUEL SYSTEM.
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; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 1,690 hours in all; 20 in this make and model; 239 in the last 90 days; 64 in the last 30 days; 1,510 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,670 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 1, 1987; 70 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,570 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-360EB (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PBI West Palm Beach FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Wind: from 010° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:46 pm from SPG, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 6 |
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 N11RJ 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.