An Emergency Over Water: Faith Tenkley's Ditching Off Boca Raton

A 23-year-old pilot flying alone from Fort Myers toward the Bahamas put her twin-engine Piper down in the Atlantic off Boca Raton rather than risk a forced landing on a crowded beach — and did it well enough to walk away without a scratch.

Bound for Bimini

Faith Tenkley departed Page Field in Fort Myers at about 8:55 a.m. on August 22, 2026, flying N40439, a 1971 Piper PA-39 Twin Comanche — a twin distinguished by its counter-rotating propellers, a design meant to eliminate the "critical engine" handling problem that conventional twins have if one engine fails. She was headed for South Bimini Airport in the Bahamas.

An Emergency En Route

Somewhere over open water, the flight ran into trouble serious enough that the pilot declared an emergency and turned back toward the US coast, aiming for Boca Raton Airport rather than continuing on to Bimini. She did not make it to the runway.

Putting It Down in the Water

Rather than attempt a forced landing near the beach, where swimmers and boaters would have been at risk, the pilot ditched in the ocean off South Beach Park. The aircraft's gear was up at touchdown — a fixed or extended gear digs into water and can flip an aircraft instantly — and she flared the nose up in the final seconds to soften the impact and control the aircraft's attitude as it hit the surface. Some public accounts describe the gear-up landing as a deliberate ditching technique; others suggest gear trouble was itself part of the in-flight emergency that forced the diversion in the first place. Available sourcing doesn't establish which it was, so this account doesn't credit either a specific technique or a specific malfunction as the reason the gear was up.

A Deliberate Choice to Protect People on the Beach

Multiple accounts specifically credit the pilot with steering clear of people and boaters on her way down, rather than simply picking the nearest flat surface. That's a real decision under real time pressure, not an accident of geography — New Smyrna Beach's banner-plane pilot, five days later, made a similar choice (see the companion piece on that accident).

Walking Away

The pilot got out of the aircraft on her own and was not injured. The airplane itself was later recovered by crane from the water near the park.

Investigation Status

The FAA and NTSB were notified, as is standard for any ditching; the cause of the in-flight emergency that forced the diversion has not been determined publicly as of this writing.

This reconstruction was researched from official investigation records where they exist, the original air traffic control recording, and contemporary reporting. The aircraft movement, timeline and written account were assembled independently by Flight Follower. Where an investigation is open or no probable cause has been published, the account says so rather than offering one.

Timeline

Accident Facts

Sources

• WFLX, "Pilot survives after plane crashes into ocean in Boca Raton"
• Simple Flying, "23-Year-Old Pilot Uninjured, Swims To Shore After Ditching Plane In Atlantic Ocean"
• Boca Post, "Plane Crashes Into Ocean Off Boca Raton With One Person Aboard And No Injuries"
• Boca Daily News, "Downed Plane in Boca Raton Park, Will Be 'Winched' by Crane and Hauled Away"