American AA-5 accident near Cape Coral, Florida, October 14, 1990
On October 14, 1990 at about 9:56 pm local time, a American AA-5, registered N5825L, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cape Coral, Florida. It was a personal 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A PARTIAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER, CAUSED BY MECHANICAL FAILURE OF THE NUMBER 3 CYLINDER ENGINE EXHAUST VALVE, FOR AN UNDETERMINED REASON.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 14, 1990 · about 9:56 pm local time
- Place
- Cape Coral, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- American AA-5 · all AA-5s on the register
- Registration
- N5825L · registry record · serial 0025
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT DEPARTED PAGE FIELD, FORT MYERS, FLORIDA, ON A PERSONAL FLIGHT. VFR CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME. NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. WHILE IN CRUISE FLIGHT, THE AIRPLANE EXPERIENCED A PARTIAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER. THE PILOT MADE AN EMERGENCY LANDING TO AN OPEN FIELD. DURING LANDING ROLL, THE AIRPLANE EXPERIENCED AN ON GROUND COLLISION WITH A HOUSE. THE AIRPLANE SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE. THE PILOT AND ONE PASSENGER WERE NOT INJURED. TEAR DOWN ANALYSIS OF THE ENGINE REVEALED THE EXHAUST VALVE ON THE NUMBER THREE ENGINE CYLINDER HAD FAILED AT THE EXHAUST STEM FOR UNDETERMINED REASONS.
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, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 286 hours in all; 38 in this make and model; 22 in the last 90 days; 7 in the last 30 days; 229 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,689 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 8, 1990; 8 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2G (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FMY Fort Myers FL at 9:40 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: not reported
- Wind: from 250° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,500 ft
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:03 pm from FMY, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number MIA91LA010.