Cessna 172S N53589

Summary

On 28 March 2005 at about 14:30 local time, a Cessna 172S registered N53589 was involved in an accident near Palm Beach, Florida, United States. 2 people were 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

28 March 2005 at 14:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Palm Beach, Florida, United States

Coordinates

26.6769, -80.0844

Aircraft

Cessna 172S

Registration

N53589

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Miami → Sarasota

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA05LA083

Nobody was injured.

The flight crews inadvertent encounter with turbulence in clouds while being vectored by ATC while operating in instrument meteorological conditions. A factor in the accident was the ATC personnel's (ARTCC) inadequate weather avoidance assistance.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

the instructional flight encountered turbulence while en route to the airport. According to the flight instructor/pilot the flight consisting of him and his student had progressed under visual meteorological conditions (VMC) until reaching the Palm Beach area, at which time an area of clouds were noted. He said that upon querying the Palm Beach Approach controller, with whom he was speaking, he was informed that Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC) had been vectoring traffic through a "break" in the clouds. The instructor said that he received a radio communications handoff from Palm Beach Approach to Miami ARTCC, and on initial contact with Miami ARTCC, the Miami ARTCC controller provided a heading to steer, which he complied with. The controller did not provide weather intensity information. As the flight proceeded along the assigned heading, the pilot said he encountered rain, and turbulence, so he elected to make a 180-degree turn, and exit the precipitation. While performing the turn he said the airplane encountered a downdraft, with an immediate decrease of about 2,000 feet, followed by increased turbulence. In the course of the turbulence encounter he said that the airplane door hinge pins fractured, and the passenger side window detached from the airplane and impacted the right side horizontal stabilizer. The pilot said he declared an emergency, and subsequently landed at Palm Beach International Airport, Palm Beach, Florida, without further incident. At the time of the accident, the accident airplane was inside PBI's airspace but under control of Miami ARTCC. Miami ARTCC is equipped with digital weather display capability that is designated to show levels 2 through 6 on the VIP scale. FAA order 7110.65, "Air Traffic Control," paragraph 2-6-4, "Weather and Chaff Services," states that controllers shall issue the level of echo intensity when that information is available.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.