- Date
- November 9, 1990, 14:47 local (19:47 UTC)
- Place
- Flamingo, FL
- Injuries
- 3 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N21STCessna 421B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 10, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19901109050129A
- Case key
- 32737
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
An undetermined airframe/component/system failure/malfunction, which resulted in a fuel fed fire in the left wing.
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
As the acft (N21ST) was en route on a flt from key west to naples, FL, the plt of another acft saw a 'fire ball' in the vcnty of where N21ST subsequently crashed. When N21ST did not arrive, a search was initiated. The wreckage was fnd the next day at 1704 EST, in the everglades natl park, nr Flamingo, FL. Drg impact, the main wreckage was buried in 30' of mud. The left outboard wing section (fm just outboard of the eng nacelle to the wing tip) was fnd aprx 1 mi fm the mainwreckage. An exam revealed the wing had failed where the nacelle fuel tank & the aux fuel tank boost pumps were mounted. No exhaust sys failure or leakage fm the fuel tanks was fnd in the area of the fire. The greatest fire dmg was at a point where the left nacelle fuel tank boost pump was mounted & aft fm there to where the rear wing spar had burned thru. The elec fuel boost pumps were not recovered after the acdnt. The ignition source for the fire was not determined.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N21ST
- Reported as
- Cessna 421B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 421B-0963
- Airframe hours
- 2,741
- Engine
- Continental GTSIO-520-H, 375 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- In-Flight
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- St. Paul Aviation
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 28, 1990 · 51 hours before
- Departed
- EYW · Key West, FL
- Destination
- APF · Naples, 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
- 69
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 10,100 total · 50 in this make and model · 20 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 120° at 15 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 10,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 88 °F, dew point 81 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MTH, 30 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.