- Date
- December 7, 2008, 12:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Homestead, FL
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 12 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N9639FCessna 208
- Defining event
- Enroute-cruise: Cabin safety event
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 29, 2009
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20081207856719A
- Case key
- 69541
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The inadvertent deployment of the reserve parachute, resulting in the skydiver being prematurely pulled from the airplane and striking the horizontal stabilizer.
Findings · 1
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The flight was at 13,500 feet overhead the airport, preparing for the skydivers to jump. The pilot turned on the green light to initiate the jump. He then felt the aircraft shudder, but did not lose control of the airplane. After most of the jumpers had left the airplane, one of the skydivers came forward and notified the pilot of damage to the tail. After a controllability check, the pilot landed the airplane without further incident. Structural damage to the left horizontal stabilizer was found after the flight. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector reported that a skydiver was standing at the door of the airplane when his reserve chute inadvertently deployed, pulling the skydiver out of the airplane. The skydiver then struck the horizontal stabilizer after being pulled from the airplane. The FAA inspector found the parachute to have a current inspection; no anomalies were found.
Factual narrative
The flight was at 13,500 feet overhead the airport, preparing for the skydivers to jump. The pilot turned on the green light to initiate the jump. He then felt the aircraft shudder, but did not lose control of the airplane. After most of the jumpers had left the airplane, one of the skydivers came forward and notified the pilot of damage to the tail. After a controllability check, the pilot landed the airplane without further incident. Structural damage to the left horizontal stabilizer was found after the flight. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector reported that a skydiver was standing at the door of the airplane when his reserve chute inadvertently deployed, pulling the skydiver out of the airplane. The skydiver then struck the horizontal stabilizer after being pulled from the airplane. The FAA inspector found the parachute to have a current inspection; no anomalies were found.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9639F
- Reported as
- Cessna 208
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 20800121
- Airframe hours
- 13,258
- Engine
- P&W Canada PT6A-60A, 1,050 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Skydiving · Part 91
- Operator
- Skydive Miami
- Registered owner
- Umatilla Aviation Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · December 4, 2008
- Departed
- X51 · Homestead, FL
- Destination
- X51 · Homestead, FL
- Airport
- X51 · Homestead General, runway 36, 4,000 × 100 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 59
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- April 20, 2007
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 6,450 total · 2,800 in this make and model · 6,341 as pilot in command · 57 in the last 90 days · 18 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 340° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 72 °F, dew point 64 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.11 inHg
- Observed at
- KHST
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.