Cessna 337 accident near Coatsville, Pennsylvania, May 20, 1984
On May 20, 1984 at about 5:45 pm local time, a Cessna 337, registered N213DL, was destroyed in an accident near Coatsville, Pennsylvania (Chester County 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 NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 20, 1984 · about 5:45 pm local time
- Place
- Coatsville, Pennsylvania · Chester County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 337 · all 337s on the register
- Registration
- N213DL · no longer on the register · serial 337-0033
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER TOUCHDOWN ABOUT 2,000 FT DOWN THE 4,600 X 100 FT RWY THE ACFT BOUNCED BACK INTO THE AIR. WITNESSES OBSERVED THE ACFT RT WING DROP CAUSING IT TO VEER TO THE RT TOWARD A LINE OF PARKED ACFT. 900 FT FROM INITIAL TOUCHDOWN THE ACFT IMPACTED RT WING FIRST IN TERRAIN BETWEEN THE RWY AND A PARALLEL TAXIWAY. THE ACFT SLID INTO TWO PARKED ACFT. A BEECH BARON WAS WAS DAMAGED BY THE COLLISION. A PIPER PA-44 WAS DESTROYED BY THE COLLISION AND POST CRASH FIRE.
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: single-engine land
- Flight time: 250 hours in all; 18 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 18 in the last 30 days; 220 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,793 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 28, 1983; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-360-C/D (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 40N Coatsville PA at 4:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 4,600 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 77°F (25°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from PHL, 31 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.