Cessna 185F accident near Wasilla, Alaska, August 8, 2004
On August 8, 2004 at about 1:30 am local time, a Cessna 185F, registered N61609, was substantially damaged in an accident near Wasilla, Alaska (Wasilla airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to compensate for a crosswind during landing and his failure to maintain directional control, which resulted in a loss of control and collision with a ditch. A factor contributing to the accident was a crosswind.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 8, 2004 · about 1:30 am local time
- Place
- Wasilla, Alaska · Wasilla · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 185F · all 185Fs on the register
- Registration
- N61609 · registry record · serial 18504235
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The private certificated pilot was landing with a left crosswind. At touchdown, the airplane veered to the right and departed off the right side of the runway. The airplane then collided with a ditch, and the right main landing gear strut was torn off the airplane. The airplane received structural damage to the landing gear, fuselage, and the right wing.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,000 hours in all; 750 in this make and model; 50 in the last 90 days; 50 in the last 30 days; 1,000 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: April 30, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,847 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 4, 2003; 50 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,333 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO550-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BGQ Big Lake AK at 6:00 pm
- Destination: PAWS Wasilla AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 21, 3,700 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 15 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N61609 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.