- Date
- August 3, 1989, 12:10 local (16:10 UTC)
- Place
- Apalachicola, FL
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N64RFCessna 172
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 5, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890803031159A
- Case key
- 32473
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
Failure of the pilot to maintain proper altitude. A factor related to the accident was: the pilot's lack of visual perception concerning altitude above the water.
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
While returning from a fish spotting trip at an alt of about 50 ft, the acft settled into the water about 500 yds from the shore. During impact, the plt's seat belt failed & he was ejected from the acft, which sank. He stated later that unknown to him at the time, a military jet passed over the area from east to west, at low alt, on a 90 deg course to his flt path. However, he also stated that for unknown reasons to him, the acft settled into the water in a straight ahead & slightly left wing low attitude.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N64RF
- Reported as
- Cessna 172
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17267375
- Airframe hours
- 6,475
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-D2G, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial observation · Part 91
- Operator
- Raffield, Danny L.
- Registered owner
- Danny L Raffield
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal; Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 21, 1988 · 734 hours before
- Departed
- PFN · Panama City, 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
- 62
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 12,400 total · 2,600 in this make and model · 246 in the last 90 days · 70 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 93 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- AQQ
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.