Cessna 305A accident near Anchorage, Alaska, September 28, 1984
On September 28, 1984 at about 4:04 am local time, a Cessna 305A, registered N5312G, was substantially damaged in an accident near Anchorage, Alaska (Merrill airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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 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
- September 28, 1984 · about 4:04 am local time
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · Merrill · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 305A · all 305As on the register
- Registration
- N5312G · no longer on the register · serial 22746
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING THE ROLLOUT THE TAIL WHEEL BEGAN TO SHIMMY AND THE ACFT SWERVED TO THE RIGHT AND GROUND LOOPED. THE LEFT WING AND LEFT HORIZONTAL STABILIZER CONTACTED THE GROUND. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE TAIL WHEEL SPRING ASS'Y WAS OVERSIZED AND NOT PROPERLY SECURED. THIS WAS THE FOURTH REPORTED OCCURRENCE INVOLVING GROUND DIRECTIONAL CONTROL PROBLEMS IN THIS ACFT.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,350 hours in all; 79 in this make and model; 90 in the last 90 days; 1,279 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 501 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, August 1, 1984; 99 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,100 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-11B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MRI Anchorage AK at 8:30 pm
- Destination: MRI Anchorage AK
- Runway 24, 4,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:50 pm from MRI, 4 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
Other NTSB records under N5312G 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.