Fleet 16B accident near Fishers Island, NY
On November 2, 2003, a Fleet 16B (airplane) was involved in an accident near Fishers Island, NY. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- November 2, 2003
- Place
- Fishers Island, NY
- Aircraft
- Fleet 16B · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 40.232°N, 72.036°W
- NTSB ID
- 20031113X01893
NTSB summary
On November 2, 2003, about 1130 eastern standard time, a Fleet 16B, N80656, was destroyed when it impacted water about 1 mile south of Fishers Island, New York. The certificated private pilot and passenger were presumed fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed for the personal flight that departed the Westerly State Airport (WST), Westerly, Rhode Island, about 1100. The local flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. The accident airplane was part of a flight of three airplanes, which included a Citabria, and an RV-8. The pilot of the Citabria stated he was performing formation flying with the Fleet, while a passenger in the RV-8 took photographs. The three pilots maintained radio communication with each other throughout the flight. About the time of the accident, the Citabria was the lead airplane. When the Fleet pilot did not respond to a radio call, the Citabria pilot circled back to look for the airplane, and noticed debris floating on the water. The pilot of the RV-8 stated he observed the yellow painted accident airplane at a very low altitude over the water. He did not clearly observe the airplane impact the water. He observed a brief flash of yellow, followed by a splash. A witness fishing on a boat stated he observed three airplanes. Two airplanes looked like they were performing in an air show. The airplanes appeared to be chasing each other, performing steep turns, steep ascents and "swooping down really low to the water." The witness stated that the accident airplane "buzzed" the surface of the water, entered
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate clearance while maneuvering, which resulted in a collision with water.
More accidents in NY
- Airbus Industrie A300B4-605R, Nov 12, 2001
- Boeing 747-131, Jul 18, 1996
- Bombardier Inc DHC-8-402, Feb 13, 2009
- Mitsubishi MU-2B-40, Apr 12, 2025
- Piper PA-31-350, Dec 15, 1989
Browse: New York
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
