At about 1451 Eastern time, the airplane was ditched into the water in the Dry Tortugas National Park, Fla. Visual conditions prevailed. The Airline Transport pilot and three passengers received minor injuries; one passenger received fatal injuries. The flight was conducted to film islands in the Dry Tortugas. As the flight progressed and was in the area of Fort Jefferson, the engine sputtered and ceased operating. The pilot was able to get the engine operating again, but about three minutes later it stopped and did not restart. Everyone aboard was able to egress the airplane except for one passenger, who had asked that a rope be tied around him so that he would not fall out of the airplane while filming through the airplanes open doorway. The airplane sank in about 50 feet of water.
August 14, 2004, Paradise Key, Fla. / Cessna U206B
At about 1451 Eastern time, the airplane was ditched into the water in the Dry Tortugas National Park, Fla. Visual conditions prevailed. The Airline Transport pilot and three passengers received minor injuries; one passenger received fatal injuries. The flight was conducted to film islands in the Dry Tortugas. As the flight progressed and was in the area of Fort Jefferson, the engine sputtered and ceased operating. The pilot was able to get the engine operating again, but about three minutes later it stopped and did not restart. Everyone aboard was able to egress the airplane except for one passenger, who had asked that a rope be tied around him so that he would not fall out of the airplane...
Key Takeaways:
- An airplane on a filming flight in Dry Tortugas National Park ditched into the water after its engine repeatedly sputtered and ultimately ceased operating.
- The incident resulted in minor injuries for the Airline Transport pilot and three passengers, but one passenger suffered fatal injuries.
- The fatally injured passenger was unable to egress the sinking airplane because he had been tied with a rope for filming through an open doorway.
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