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Accidents · NTSB MIA90LA030 · Final report

Cessna 177RG accident near Mims, Florida, November 21, 1989

On November 21, 1989 at about 5:00 pm local time, a Cessna 177RG, registered N7628V, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mims, Florida. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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

A WORN THROTTLE CONTROL ASSEMBLY THAT HAD FAILED.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
November 21, 1989 · about 5:00 pm local time
Place
Mims, Florida · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Cessna 177RG · all 177RGs on the register
Registration
N7628V · no longer on the register · serial 177RG0896
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

WHILE ON A COMMERCIAL PLT CHECK FLT, THE APPLICANT WAS GIVEN A SIMULATED ENG FAILURE. HE SELECTED A DIRT ROAD FOR A SIMULATED FORCED LANDING. AT AN ALT OF ABOUT 500 FT, AFTER THE EXAMINER WAS ASSURED THE APPLICANT COULD HAVE LANDED, THE APPLICANT WAS TOLD TO GO AROUND. THE APPLICANT APPLIED THROTTLE, BUT THE ENG DID NOT RESPOND. WHILE ATTEMPTING TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM, THE ACFT OVERFLEW MOST OF THE ROAD. UNABLE TO LAND ON THE ROAD, THE PLTS SELECTED A FIELD OF SAPLINGS & THE ACFT WAS DAMAGED DURING AN EMERGENCY LANDING. AN EXAM OF THE ENG REVEALED THE THROTTLE CONTROL ASSEMBLY WAS WORN & HAD FAILED, WHICH ALLOWED THE INNER CABLE TO EXIT ITS HOUSING.

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; instrument: airplane
  • Flight time: 501 hours in all; 28 in this make and model; 20 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days; 454 as pilot in command
  • Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
  • Seat: left

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 2,845 hours
  • Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 14, 1989; 60 hours since
  • Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
  • Seats: 4
  • Landing gear: retractable
  • Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A1B6D (piston); 0 hours total
  • Operator: Grady Francis, INC.

The flight

  • Departed from: SFB Sanford FL at 3:18 pm
  • Flight plan: none
  • Runway 0
  • A second pilot was aboard

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Wind: from 300° at 8 knots
  • Visibility: 6 statute miles
  • Sky: clear
  • Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
  • Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
  • Observation at 4:55 pm from TIX, 15 miles away

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew2

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.