# Accident 19971021030779A: Diamon DA20A1, West Palm Beach, FL, October 21, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 21, 1997, 12:20 local time
- Place: West Palm Beach, FL
- Airport: Palm Beach International
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Final Approach
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 26.6705° N, 80.0607° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=26.6705&lon=-80.0607&mi=10
- Aircraft: N534SS, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N534SS-2000-06-01) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Diamond Aircraft Ind DA20-A1 (registry code 2990000, https://openairdocs.org/model/diamond-aircraft-ind-da20-a1) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: DIAMON DA20A1
- Reported engine: ROTAX ROTAX912
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 80 total, 55 in this make and model, 80 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ATL98LA006](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL98LA006) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19971021030779A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

ON FINAL MD80 PASSED HOMEBUILT. LANDING ON 27R. WAKE ROLLED THE DA20 UPSIDE DOWN. CRASHED. HAD DEVIATED INTO WAKE. (-23) 10/21/97, ABOUT 1220 LOCAL WAS CLEARED TO LAND ON RUNWAY 27 LEFT ALSO WAS ISSUED MD80 TRAFFIC LANDING ON RUNWAY 27 RIGHT, THE NORTH RUNWAY, N534SS, DA 20-A1 AIRCRAFT COLLIDED WITH THE GROUND SHORT OF RUNWAY 27R WHILE ONAPPROACH TO WEST PALM BEACH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, WEST PALM BEACH, FL. THE AIRPLANE WAS OPERATED BY MR. ERIK R. LINDKVIST OF DAYTONA BEACH, FL. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS EXISTED, AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE PILOT AND ONE PASSENGER SUSTAINED SERIOUS INJURIES, AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. N534SS ATTEMPTED TO LAND ON RUNWAY 27R BEHIND A MD-80 AIRLINER. WAKE TURBULENCE WAS ENCOUNTERED WHICH CAUSED THE AIRCRAFT TO CRASH.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB ATL98LA006](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL98LA006), Oct 21, 1997: Diamond Aircraft Industries DA20-A1 (N534SS), West Palm Beach, FL, substantial damage. Probable cause: the pilot's inadvertent use of the wrong runway, and his improper decision to continue the approach behind a large airplane (MD-80), which resulted in a wake turbulence encounter, loss of aircraft…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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