Curtiss-Wright C-46A accident near Wulik River Str, Alaska, March 28, 1982
On March 28, 1982 at about 4:10 pm local time, a Curtiss-Wright C-46A, registered N9852F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Wulik River Str, Alaska (Lik Airstrip airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under large-aircraft private carriage rules (Part 125). 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 NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 28, 1982 · about 4:10 pm local time
- Place
- Wulik River Str, Alaska · Lik Airstrip
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Curtiss-Wright C-46A
- Registration
- N9852F · no longer on the register · serial 423659
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · large-aircraft private carriage rules (Part 125)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING ARRIVAL, THE PILOT NOTED THAT THERE WAS A CARGO PLANE BEING UNLOADED AT THE END OF A 4100 FT, SNOW COVERED RUNWAY. HE ELECTED TO LAND FROM THE OPPOSITE END WITHIN THE FIRST 4000 FT. THE WIND WAS CALM. DURING THE LANDING FLARE, THE RIGHT MAIN GEAR STRUCK A SNOW BERM AT THE APPROACH END OF THE RUNWAY AND FAILED. THE PLANE BOUNCED ON THE RUNWAY AND THE LEFT GEAR FOLDED. THE PLANE THEN SLID ABOUT 1000 FT ON ITS BELLY TO A STOP.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,286 hours in all; 538 in this make and model; 63 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 1,655 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 19,222 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 5 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 48,000 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P & W R-2800 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Woods Air Fuel
The flight
- Departed from: Kotzebue AK at 11:35 am
- Destination: OTZ Wulik River Str AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 27, 4,100 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.