# Accident 19980131000759A: Cessna 170A, Miami, FL, January 31, 1998 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: January 31, 1998, 14:18 local time - Place: Miami, FL - Airport: Opa Locka West Aprt - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Go Round (Aborted VFR) - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 25.9409° N, 80.3202° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=25.9409&lon=-80.3202&mi=10 - Aircraft: N1200D, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N1200D-1998-05-27) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Cessna 170A (registry code 2072304, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-170a) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA 170A - Reported engine: CONT O300A - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 1 - Pilot flight hours: 300 total - NTSB investigation: [NTSB MIA98FA064](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA98FA064) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980131000759A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. PICKED UP BANNER AND DROPPED IT. STALLED. IMPACT RIGHT WING LOW. INDICATES PILOT LACKED SKILL PER AIRSPEED CONTROL. (-23) PILOT WAS A PART TIME BANNER TOW PILOT FOR COMPANY AND NORMALLY FLEW A C-172 FOR BANNER TOWING. ON THIS DAY HE WENT TO THE AIRPORT IN HIS OWN PERSONALLY OWNED C-170 AND TOLD THE BANNER TOW OPERATOR THAT HE WANTED TO TOW A "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" BANNER FOR HIS SISTER'S BIRTHDAY. THE OWNER OF THE COMPANY SAID THAT THE COMPANY AIRPLANE WAS BUSY AND THE PILOT SAID HE WOULD FLY THE BANNER WITH HIS OWN AIRPLANE. AFTER SOME DISCUSSION ABOUT THE AIRPLANE NOT BEING ON THE BANNER TOW WAIVER THE PILOT TOWED THE BANNER AND RETURNED TO THE AIRPORT AND DROPPED IT. LATER HE ASKED TO TOW A LARGER BANNER TO SEE HOW THE C-170 WOULD DO WITH IT. IT WAS DECIDED THAT HE COULD MAKE A TRIP AROUNG THE PATTER WITH A BANNER THAT WAS SCHEDULED TO BE TOWED A LITTLE LATER IN THE DAY AND WAS ALREADY LAID OUT. THE GROUND CREW MENTIONED THAT THE WIND WAS PICKING UP AND WAS SHIFTING TO THE WEST FROM THE NORTH WHERE IT HAD BEEN EARLIER. THE PILOT PICKED UP THE BANNER ON THE FIRST PASS AND WITNESSES REPORTED THAT THE PICK UP LOOKED GOOD, NONETHELESS THE PILOT RELEASED I T JUST ABOUT THE TIME IT WAS FULLY CLEAR OF THE GROUND. THE WITNESSES ALSO SAID THAT THE DROP LOOKED GOOD AND THE AIRPLANE CONTINUED A NORMAL LOOKING SHALLOW CLIMB WITH WHAT SOUNDED LIKE NORMAL ENGINE NOISES UNTIL ABOUT THE TIME THE C-170 WAS OVER THE END OF THE RUNWAY AND ABOUT 150 FT. HIGH. AT THAT POINT THE WINGS STARTED TO ROCK AND THE NOSE STARTED TO DROP AND THE AIRPLANE BEGAN AN EVER INCREASING RIGHT TURN AS THE NOSE CONTINUED TO DROP UNTIL IT IMPACTED THE GROUND ALMOST VERTICAL. POST ACCIDENT EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE DID NOT DISCLOSE ANY INDICATION THAT THE BANNER OR ITS TOW ROPE HAD CAUGHT ON OR DAMAGED ANYTHING. THE TOW RELEASE WORKED NORMALLY WHEN TESTED. THERE WAS SOME FUEL IN THE FUEL TANKS AFTER THE ACCIDENT. ALTHOUGH THIS INSPECTOR WAS NOT PRESENT WHEN THE ENGINE WAS EXAMINED, THE NTSB INVESTIGATOR SAID THAT THE CARBURETOR FLOAT BOWL HAD FUEL IN IT. THE CONTROL SYSTEMS APPEARED TO BE INTACT. ## 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 MIA98FA064](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA98FA064), Jan 31, 1998: Cessna 170A (N1200D), Miami, FL, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: failure of the pilot to maintain adequate airspeed during a banner pickup, which resulted in an inadvertent stall and collision with the terrain. The lack of altitude for a stall recovery was a… 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.