Cessna 170B accident near Anchorage, Alaska, May 12, 2002
On May 12, 2002 at about 10:00 pm local time, a Cessna 170B, registered N7608B, was substantially damaged in an accident near Anchorage, Alaska (Lake Hood Strip airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The failure of the pilot to maintain directional control during takeoff. A factor associated with the accident was an inadvertent ground loop.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 12, 2002 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · Lake Hood Strip · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 170B · all 170Bs on the register
- Registration
- N7608B · no longer on the register · serial 25491
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The private pilot was departing on a gravel airstrip for a local flight with friends. As the airplane accelerated along the runway it drifted to the left. Upon reaching the left edge of the runway, the pilot aborted the takeoff. The airplane skidded off the runway to the left. The left main landing gear collapsed inward and the left wing struck the ground. The airplane came to rest on its nose, left main landing gear, and left wing. There were no injuries associated with the accident, and no mechanical anomalies with the airplane.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 253 hours in all; 45 in this make and model; 13 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 159 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: July 9, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,340 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 1, 2002; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Z41 Lake Hood Strip AK at 5:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 31, 2,200 ft by 70 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.12 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 pm from PALH
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.