Minor Judson "Buddy" Ward, 63, was killed on Valentine's Day five years ago, when he flew his Cherokee 180 into a citrus grove in Florida. Adding to the tragedy is that the recovered engine was stolen from an impound yard less than two weeks after the wreck.

Mr. Ward's widow, Faye, who is still convinced, reports say, that her husband must have had something go wrong, sued the yard operator, Kauff's Transportation Systems. Three days into the trial that started Monday, and dramatically, just after Mrs Ward took the witness stand, Kauff's agreed to pay $700,000 for losing the engine, and to accept no more liability of any kind. That case is over.

Now, a busted-up Cherokee's engine isn't worth anywhere near $700,000; but the settlement should help Mrs Ward at least ease some of her angst. As evidence, assuming something was actually wrong with the engine, it could theoretically have been worth millions.

The NTSB thinks it knows why "Buddy" Ward, former Cox Newspapers vice president, crashed.

The NTSB report shows that the airplane was on its first flight since its annual, and that Mr Ward was VFR-rated and on a special medical, which was current. Not all the maintenance and inspections were up to Space Shuttle standards, however. The report says, "The engine had accumulated 3,230 total flight hours with 1,081 flight hours since major overhaul, which was on February 6, 1980. On May 21, 1978, the last altimeter and static system checks were performed. The transponder was last tested on January 21, 1985." The aircraft, though, did not seem to have been having troubles, according to what the NTSB saw. Ward had filled the tanks, too, with what proved to be clean gas.

According to the NTSB report, Ward hadn't logged a BFR since 1991.

More can be learned from the final report: "The pilot did not obtain a weather briefing from FAA Flight Service or a DUAT's vendor. The pilot was observed to go into the weather room at the airport where commercial computer weather services was available. Departure was delayed due to low ceilings and visibility. After departure the aircraft was observed flying low in fog, collide with powerlines, and crash. Postcrash examination of the aircraft structure, flight controls, engine, and propeller showed no evidence of precrash failure or malfunction."

Though departure WX was fine, the NTSB continued, "A sheriff's department helicopter pilot flew to the scene from the St. Lucie County Airport, shortly after the accident. He stated the tops of the electrical transmission towers at the crash site were obscured by the low clouds and fog, the cloud ceiling was about 100 feet above the ground, and visibility was about 1/4 to 1/2 mile."

"The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:

"The pilot's continued visual flight rules into instrument flight rules conditions and his failure to maintain altitude after encountering instrument flight rules conditions resulting in the aircraft colliding with powerlines and crashing. A factor in the accident was the pilot's failure to obtain a full weather briefing prior to departure."

FMI: www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief2.asp?ev_id=20001211X09577&ntsbno=MIA98FA079&akey=1