- Date
- August 9, 1983, 19:51 local (23:51 UTC)
- Place
- Pahokee, FL
- Injuries
- 6 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N7447SAerostar 600
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19830809044979A
- Case key
- 30926
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The acft departed ft. pierce, FL on a VFR flight to key west, FL, and ditched in lake okeechobee. While climbing THROUGH5000 ft the left engine lost power and started surging, the oil temperature gauge failed and smoke came from under the instrument panel. The plt reduced power on the left engine and requested vectors to the nearest arpt. He thought the engine was producing power so he did not feather. When he realized the arpt would not be made he set up for a ditching in the lake. Before touchdown, power was cut and both props feathered, but the left prop did not feather. Inspection of the left engine after acft recovery showed the oil temperature and ignition wires ran in a bundle of 5 wires incorrectly routed within a quarter inch of the turbocharger exhaust which burned through all wires and grounded out the ignition. The left engine did not feather due to low RPM. One hr before the accident, the number 1, 4, 5 and 6 cylinders were changed, which required removing the eng from the acft.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7447S
- Reported as
- Aerostar 600
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 60-0028
- Airframe hours
- 1,690
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540-S1A5, 290 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- David Paul Horan
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 24, 1983 · 9 hours before
- Departed
- FPR · Fort Pierce, FL
- Destination
- EYW · Key West, FL
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
- 41
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,250 total · 425 in this make and model · 1,100 as pilot in command · 34 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 25,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 5 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PBI, 33 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.