Amateur-built BUCCANEER II accident near Cocoa, Florida, August 27, 1993
On August 27, 1993 at about 8:00 pm local time, a amateur-built BUCCANEER II, registered N693KA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cocoa, Florida (Merritt Island airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL TO PROPERLY REINSTALL A BOLT AND NUT IN THE ELEVATOR CONTROL LINKAGE, WHICH RESULTED IN A DISCONNECT OF THE LINKAGE AND LOSS OF ELEVATOR CONTROL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 27, 1993 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Cocoa, Florida · Merritt Island · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built BUCCANEER II BUCCANEER
- Registration
- N693KA · no longer on the register · serial B2B-K025
- 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 AIRCRAFT HAD JUST BEEN REPAIRED AFTER RECEIVING TORNADO DAMAGE. THIS REPAIR INCLUDED REMOVAL AND REPLACEMENT OF THE ELEVATOR CONTROL TUBE. THE PILOT TAXIED TO THE RUNWAY FOR THE PURPOSE OF A TEST FLIGHT. ALL FLIGHT CONTROL CHECKS APPEARED NORMAL. AFTER LIFT-OFF, THE PILOT INTENDED TO LEVEL OFF AT 5 TO 10 FEET, THEN TOUCH DOWN AGAIN. HOWEVER, AFTER THE AIRPLANE BECAME AIRBORNE, HE LOST ELEVATOR CONTROL, AND THE AIRCRAFT CLIMBED STEEPLY TO 50 TO 75 FEET. THE PILOT THEN REDUCED POWER, THE AIRCRAFT'S NOSE DROPPED, AND THE AIRCRAFT DESCENDED. WITH NO ELEVATOR CONTROL, THE PILOT WAS UNABLE TO ARREST THE DESCENT, AND THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED THE GROUND. A POST-CRASH EXAMINATION REVEALED THAT A BOLT AND NUT WERE MISSING FROM THE ELEVATOR CONTROL LINKAGE, WHICH ALLOWED THE LINKAGE TO BECOME DISCONNECTED.
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: 740 hours in all; 35 in this make and model; 65 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 680 as pilot in command; 180 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, May 28, 1993
- Maximum gross weight: 1,200 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Amw 250-3C3 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: COI at 8:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 11, 3,600 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 8,000 ft; scat at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:54 pm from TIX, 11 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.