Piper PA-18-150 accident near Cape Canaveral, Florida, August 5, 1993
On August 5, 1993 at about 5:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-18-150, registered N7540, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cape Canaveral, Florida. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
LOSS OF ENGINE POWER FOR AN UNDETERMINED REASON.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 5, 1993 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Cape Canaveral, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-18-150 · all PA-18-150s on the register
- Registration
- N7540 · no longer on the register · serial 18-5431
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT STATED HE WAS TOWING AN ADVERTISING BANNER SOUTHBOUND WHILE JUST OFFSHORE FROM THE BEACH. SUDDENLY THE ENGINE QUIT. THE AIRCRAFT WAS DITCHED IN THE OCEAN NEAR SHORE AND NOSED OVER DURING THE DITCHING. EXAMINATION OF THE AIRCRAFT AND ENGINE AFTER RECOVERY FROM THE OCEAN BY FAA INSPECTORS REVEALED NO EVIDENCE TO INDICATE PRECRASH MECHANICAL FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION OF THE ENGINE AND SYSTEMS. USABLE QUANTITIES OF AUTOMOTIVE FUEL WAS FOUND IN BOTH TANKS OF THE AIRCRAFT.
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
- Flight time: 2,800 hours in all; 250 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 70 in the last 30 days; 2,700 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,272 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 23, 1993; 35 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: COI Cocoa Beach FL at 4:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 75°F (24°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:50 pm from MLB, 20 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.
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.