Piper PA-44-180 accident near Daytona Beach, Florida, September 7, 1998
On September 7, 1998 at about 3:23 am local time, a Piper PA-44-180, registered N922ER, was destroyed in an accident near Daytona Beach, Florida (Daytona Beach Int'L airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's use of the aircraft to commit suicide.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 7, 1998 · about 3:23 am local time · cases in 1998
- Place
- Daytona Beach, Florida · Daytona Beach Int'L · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-44-180 · all PA-44-180s on the register
- Registration
- N922ER · registry record · serial 4496009
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot gained unauthorized access to the aircraft and departed the airport followed a short time later by a request to ATC for an ILS approach to runway 7 left. As the flight approached the runway it was observed at a high altitude and when questioned if he could get down and land, the pilot reported 'this will be my final landing.' Witnesses observed the aircraft fly over the end of the runway at about 600 feet and then descend in a nose low attitude until impact with the runway. Engine power was observed to go to full power as the aircraft descended. The pilot was observed to have consumed alcohol beverages prior to the accident and was found to have a alcohol level of .15 g/dl in the liver. The pilot left a note stating 'I do not want to live.' The Medical Examiners Office ruled the manner of death as suicide.
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 multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 984 hours in all; 18 in this make and model; 171 in the last 90 days; 54 in the last 30 days; 883 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,724 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 31, 1998; 4 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1H6 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: DAB at 3:04 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 7L, 10,500 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, bright
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 79°F (26°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 am from DAB, 1 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N922ER on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Piper PA-44 Seminole 603 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Piper 44,839 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1H6 106 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Daytona Beach International · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Florida 6,111 since 1982 · 985 in the last ten years
- Florida 21,708 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/MIA98FA239.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.