Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
the in-flight failure of the right engine and the pilot’s failure to adequately manage the airplane’s performance after the engine failed. The right engine failure resulted from inadequate maintenance that was performed by Air Sunshine’s maintenance personnel during undocumented maintenance. Contributing to the passenger fatalities was the pilot’s failure to provide an emergency briefing after the right engine failed.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Historical)
Analysis
The Safety Board's full report is available at http://www.ntsb.gov/publictn/publictn.htm. The Aircraft Accident Report number is NTSB/AAR-04/03.
On July 13, 2003, about 1530 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 402C, N314AB, registered to Tropical International Airlines Inc., and operated by Air Sunshine Inc., as Air Sunshine flight 527, was ditched in the Atlantic Ocean about 7.35 nautical miles west-northwest of Treasure Cay Airport (MYAT), Treasure Cay, Great Abaco Island, Bahamas, after the in-flight failure of the right engine. Two of the nine passengers sustained no injuries, five passengers and the pilot sustained minor injuries, and one adult and one child passenger died after they evacuated the airplane. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The airplane was being operated under the provisions 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 135 as a scheduled international passenger commuter flight from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, to MYAT. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which operated on a visual flight rules flight plan.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# MIA03FA141