Cessna 185F accident near King Salmon, Alaska, October 10, 2004
On October 10, 2004 at about 5:00 pm local time, a Cessna 185F, registered N5001R, was substantially damaged in an accident near King Salmon, Alaska. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured; 3 others were unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to use a checklist, and to remove the flight control locks prior to flight, which resulted in an uncontrolled descent and in-flight collision with terrain/water.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 10, 2004 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- King Salmon, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured; 3 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 185F · all 185Fs on the register
- Registration
- N5001R · registry record · serial 18502974
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The commercial pilot was familiar with the type of accident airplane he was flying, but he was using a friend's float-equipped airplane on a personal fishing trip, and did not have his own checklist with him. He indicated he did not use a checklist list, other than one from memory. He stated that it was the first flight of the morning, and after takeoff from a remote river, the airplane pitched up rapidly, and he could not lower the nose until he reduced power. The airplane then pitched down steeply, and he realized he had left the control lock in the control wheel. He removed the control lock, and was able to raise the nose just before the airplane struck the water, collapsing the floats and damaging the wings and fuselage. The pilot stated that the owner used a non-standard control wheel lock. It was a screwdriver, with the shaft of the screwdriver placed in the hole of the control wheel column.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,863 hours in all; 3,590 in this make and model; 66 in the last 90 days; 13 in the last 30 days; 8,712 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-550D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: King Salmon AK
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.