Cessna 207A accident near Aniak, Alaska, January 7, 1983
On January 7, 1983 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Cessna 207A, registered N7389U, was substantially damaged in an accident near Aniak, Alaska (Aniak airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 7 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
- January 7, 1983 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Aniak, Alaska · Aniak · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 7 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 207A · all 207As on the register
- Registration
- N7389U · registry record · serial 20700432
- 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 ACFT BEGAN TO LOSE POWER AT 700 FT MSL DURING CLIMBOUT. THE PILOT TRIED THE BOOST PUMPS AND WAS ABLE TO REGAIN SOME POWER MOMENTARILY. WHEN ALL POWER WAS LOST THE PILOT WAS FORCED TO LAND SHORT OF THE AIRPORT ON A FROZEN RIVER. THE ROUGH ICE SHEARED THE NOSE GEAR DURING ROLL-OUT. THE PILOT STATED IN AN INTERVIEW THAT HE WAS UNAWARE OF TRAPPED WATER IN FUEL TANKS AND HE DID NOT DRAIN THE FUEL SUMPS DURING PRE-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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,500 hours in all; 1,000 in this make and model; 282 in the last 90 days; 3,265 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,295 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, January 4, 1983; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F (piston); 0 hours total
- Not recorded
- Operator: Harolds Air Service
The flight
- Destination: KLG Kalskag AK
- Runway 28, 6,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: -15°F (-26°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 6 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N7389U the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.