Piper PA-22-150 accident near Tyonek, Alaska, August 6, 2005
On August 6, 2005 at about 4:45 am local time, a Piper PA-22-150, registered N4774A, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tyonek, Alaska. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The instructor pilot's inadvertent touchdown during a low pass, and attempted go-around, which resulted in an in-flight collision with terrain, and nose over.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 6, 2005 · about 4:45 am local time
- Place
- Tyonek, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-22-150 · all PA-22-150s on the register
- Registration
- N4774A · registry record · serial 22-3923
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The 14 CFR Part 91 instructor pilot was providing instruction while scouting an off-site landing area. He said during a low pass the airplane started to settle, and he applied power to climb, but the engine failed to respond. He said the airplane touched down, and during the landing roll the airplane nosed over. In his written statement to the NTSB, the pilot wrote that the throttle should have been applied more slowly for the go-around, and that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures associated with the accident.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,419 hours in all; 300 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 40 in the last 30 days; 5,205 as pilot in command; 4,744 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 106 hours in all; 26 in this make and model; 33 in the last 90 days; 18 in the last 30 days; 19 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,495 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 1, 2005; 4 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,000 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 4AK6 Wolf Lake AK at 10:20 pm
- Destination: Tyonek AK
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.