Cessna 208 N80JF

Summary

On 29 June 2019 at about 13:10 local time, a Cessna 208 registered N80JF, operated by ISR Aviation LLC, was involved in an accident near Plant City, Florida, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

29 June 2019 at 13:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Plant City, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Blackwater Creek (9FD2)

Coordinates

28.1375, -82.1467

Aircraft

Cessna 208

Registration

N80JF

Category

Airplane

Year built

1993

Engines

1

Operator

ISR Aviation LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Skydiving

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Plant City → Plant City

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA19TA211

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's improper landing flare due to reduced visibility from a foggy windshield and his failure to use the airplane’s windshield defrost system, which resulted in a hard landing and subsequent nose landing gear collapse.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he was conducting skydiving operations and that the airplane was on final approach to the runway, about 80 ft above ground level and a "few feet before the threshold," when the airplane's windshield became "foggy" and he could not see the runway. He did not attempt to go around because the skydivers were in the area, and he did not want to hit them or trees surrounding the runway. Review of a witness video recording of the landing revealed that the airplane's nose landing gear contacted the runway first, followed by the main landing gear. The airplane bounced, and the nose landing gear impacted the runway again and then collapsed. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The airplane was equipped with a defrost system for the forward cabin windshield. However, the system was likely not being used at the time of the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.