Cessna U206 accident near Hinchinbrook, Alaska, October 14, 1984
On October 14, 1984 at about 6:30 pm local time, a Cessna U206, registered N4863C, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hinchinbrook, Alaska (Strawberry Point airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 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
- October 14, 1984 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Hinchinbrook, Alaska · Strawberry Point · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna U206 · all U206s on the register
- Registration
- N4863C · no longer on the register · serial U20603856
- 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
INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE NOSE GEAR TORQUE LINK BOLT SHEARED DURING THE LANDING ROLL ON AN ABANDONED SAND AIRSTRIP CAUSING THE GEAR COLLAPSE AND NOSEOVER. METALLURGICAL TESTING DISCLOSED EVIDENCE OF LONG TERM PROGRESSION OF SEVERE CORROSION BETWEEN THE BOLT AND IT'S SLEEVE THE ACFT HAD BEEN INVOLVED IN OPERATIONS REQUIRING MULTIPLE TAKEOFFS AND LANDINGS PER HOUR, MANY OF WHICH WERE ON SALT WTER BEACHES.
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: 4,860 hours in all; 1,500 in this make and model; 350 in the last 90 days; 31 in the last 30 days; 4,790 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,343 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 5, 1984; 36 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Chitina Air Service
The flight
- Departed from: CKU Cordova AK at 1:15 pm
- Destination: Hinchinbrook AK
- Runway 5, 1,800 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 90 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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 N4863C 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.