Cessna 206 accident near Near Nightmute, Alaska, April 9, 1982
On April 9, 1982 at about 4:25 pm local time, a Cessna 206, registered N9938M, was substantially damaged in an accident near Near Nightmute, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- April 9, 1982 · about 4:25 pm local time
- Place
- Near Nightmute, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 206 · all 206s on the register
- Registration
- N9938M · no longer on the register · serial U2060588
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT STATED THAT DURING FLIGHT THE AIRCRAFT INADVERTENTLY DRIFTED NORTH OF HIS INTENDED FLIGHT PATH INTO AN AREA OF HIGHER TERRAIN. WHEN THE AIRCRAFT ENCOUNTERED A WHITEOUT CONDITION THE PILOT ELECTED TO TURN TO THE RIGHT TOWARD WHAT HE OBSERVED AS BETTER VISIBILITIES RATHER THAN TOWARDS LOWER TERRAIN. THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK A SNOW COVERED SLOPE IN LEVEL FLIGHT.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine
- Flight time: 5,683 hours in all; 1,200 in this make and model; 102 in the last 90 days; 29 in the last 30 days; 4,689 as pilot in command; 733 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 981 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F9 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Western Yukon Air
The flight
- Departed from: BET Bethel AK at 11:40 am
- Destination: AK45 Tanunak AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 20 knots
- Sky: overcast at 1,100 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 86°F (30°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.