Cessna 207 accident near Dillingham, Alaska, March 2, 1985
On March 2, 1985 at about 1:25 pm local time, a Cessna 207, registered N1715U, was destroyed in an accident near Dillingham, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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
- March 2, 1985 · about 1:25 pm local time
- Place
- Dillingham, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 207 · all 207s on the register
- Registration
- N1715U · no longer on the register · serial 20700315
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT WAS ATTEMPTING A 180 DEG TURN TO REVERSE DIRECTION AWAY FROM LOWERING CLOUDS AND SNOW SHOWERS WHEN THE RIGHT WING DUG INTO THE SNOW COVERED TERRAIN. THE PLT STATED A VIRTUAL 'WHITE OUT' CONDITION EXISTED AT THE TIME.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,400 hours in all; 3,500 in this make and model; 220 in the last 90 days; 110 in the last 30 days; 4,400 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DLG Dillingham AK at 2:16 pm
- Destination: 17Z Manokotak AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 050° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,000 ft
- Temperature: 21°F (-6°C), dew point 18°F (-8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.