Embraer EMB-110 accident near Fairbanks, Alaska, November 20, 1984
On November 20, 1984 at about 4:35 pm local time, a Embraer EMB-110, registered N39174, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fairbanks, Alaska (Fairbanks 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
- November 20, 1984 · about 4:35 pm local time
- Place
- Fairbanks, Alaska · Fairbanks · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Embraer EMB-110 · all EMB-110s on the register
- Registration
- N39174 · no longer on the register · serial 110-415
- 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 SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE WHEN THE LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED DURING LANDING. TESTS CONDUCTED BY THE ACFT OPERATOR AND ACFT MANUFACTURER FAILED TO PROVIDE ANY REASON FOR THE GEAR COLLAPSE. BOTH PLTS STATED THE GEAR WAS DOWN AND LOCKED UPON TOUCHDOWN.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,172 hours in all; 772 in this make and model; 280 in the last 90 days; 5,050 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,304 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, November 19, 1984; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 13,007 lb
- Seats: 20
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PT6-34A (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Arctic Circle Air, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: TAL Tanana AK at 3:55 pm
- Destination: FAI Fairbanks AK
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0, 10,300 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 60 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 8,000 ft; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 25°F (-4°C), dew point 14°F (-10°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:49 pm from FAI
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.