Piper PA-23-250 accident near Fruitland Park, Florida, April 26, 1998
On April 26, 1998 at about 5:40 pm local time, a Piper PA-23-250, registered N154CH, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fruitland Park, Florida (Flying Palomino Ranch airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's failure to attain the proper rate of descent at touchdown.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 26, 1998 · about 5:40 pm local time · cases in 1998
- Place
- Fruitland Park, Florida · Flying Palomino Ranch · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-23-250 · all PA-23-250s on the register
- Registration
- N154CH · registry record · serial 27-7305191
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
After a report of a normal touchdown on the grass runway, the right main landing gear fork and rod assembly failed. The right wing dropped, contacted the runway, and the airplane veered to the right and collided with obstructions. Metallurgical examination of the failed fork and rod assembly, and AN bolt, revealed that the fork failed due to overstress and the bolt failed in shear. No preexisting cracks were noted in the failed fork or bolt.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,018 hours in all; 380 in this make and model; 13 in the last 90 days; 13 in the last 30 days; 930 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,027 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 24, 1997; 4 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,200 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TIO-540-C1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MCO Orlando FL at 6:15 pm
- Destination: 5X1
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 2,500 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from LEE, 7 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N154CH on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Piper PA-23 Apache and Aztec 1,315 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Piper 44,848 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming TIO-540-C1A 10 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Orlando International · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Florida 6,103 since 1982 · 981 in the last ten years
- Florida 21,712 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/MIA98LA145.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.