Cessna 185 accident near Delta Junction, Alaska, July 6, 2005
On July 6, 2005 at about 9:00 pm local time, a Cessna 185, registered N8360Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Delta Junction, Alaska (Last Chance Airstrip airport). It was a public-use flight (federal) 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 misjudged distance/altitude during the landing touchdown and subsequent undershoot, and his failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during the landing roll, which resulted in an on-ground encounter with high vegetation.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 6, 2005 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Delta Junction, Alaska · Last Chance Airstrip · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 185 · all 185s on the register
- Registration
- N8360Q · registry record · serial 18503666
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Public-use flight (federal) · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airline transport certificated pilot was landing at a remote mining airstrip during a public use flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91. The airstrip slopes uphill, and is about 1,000 feet long, and about 16 feet wide. The pilot indicated that during the landing roll, the right main landing gear tire dropped into a rut, pulling the airplane to the right, into several willow trees. During an inspection of the airplane at a Department of Interior repair facility, inspectors discovered damage to an inboard stabilizer rib, which required a major repair. The accident airstrip was examined by an air safety investigator with the Department of the Interior, Aviation Management Directorate, Aviation Safety Division. The investigator reported that the airplane's tailwheel contacted the ground about 53 feet before the beginning of the airstrip. The main landing gear tires contacted the airstrip surface about 75 feet after the initial tailwheel strike. The propeller struck the ground about 52 feet beyond the approach end of the airstrip, and about 30 feet from the initial contact with the main wheels. Following the propeller strikes, the airplane veered to the right and ran through several 2 to 4 foot tall willow trees.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 10,000 hours in all; 800 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 60 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: November 1, 2003
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,844 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 1, 2004; 99 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: D66 Delta Junction AK at 3:15 pm
- Destination: Delta Junction AK
- Runway 14, 1,000 ft by 16 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 090° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,000 ft
- 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.
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.