Lake LA-4-200 accident near Lake Murray, South Carolina, February 25, 1998
On February 25, 1998 at about 7:55 pm local time, a Lake LA-4-200, registered N3020P, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lake Murray, South Carolina. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A collision with an unknown submerged.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 25, 1998 · about 7:55 pm local time
- Place
- Lake Murray, South Carolina · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Lake LA-4-200 · all LA-4-200s on the register
- Registration
- N3020P · no longer on the register · serial 962
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The amphibian airplane collided with a partially submerged object during a water landing that ripped and crushed the hull, below the water line, from the nose cone to the left side cockpit door. The airplane subsequently nosed over and submerged in the water..
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,600 hours in all; 4,573 in this make and model; 9 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 12,461 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,442 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 6, 1997; 60 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,600 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A1B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CAE Columbia SC at 7:28 pm
- Destination: SC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 310° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:56 pm from CAE, 18 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.