ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – The National Transportation Safety Board has released its preliminary report on the November crash of a small plane into the surf at Anastasia Island.
Investigators commend the pilot for setting the Piper PA-18-150 down without injuring anyone on Anastasia State Park’s beach.
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The pilot was doing an aerial survey of erosion after Hurricane Nicole on Nov. 14 when he reported his engine sputtered twice for 30 to 60 seconds, sputtered a third time and then shut off, according to the NTSB’s Aviation Investigation Preliminary Report on the incident.
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The NTSB states the plane went into glide mode toward a stretch of the beach where there were fewer people, and as the pilot made his final spiraling maneuver, the plane began sinking faster than he anticipated. The NTSB said the pilot leveled the wings and opted to put the plane down in the surf line. As he came down, according to the NTSB, the front landing gear dug into the sand, and the plane flipped into the surf.
The pilot was able to escape the cockpit uninjured.
Investigators are still trying to determine why the plane’s engine lost power.