Cessna 206 accident near Seward, Alaska, April 26, 1985
On April 26, 1985 at about 2:00 pm local time, a Cessna 206, registered N4863C, was substantially damaged in an accident near Seward, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 3 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
- April 26, 1985 · about 2:00 pm local time
- Place
- Seward, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 206 · all 206s 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
THE PLT STATED THE ACFT WAS IN CRUISE FLT WHEN THE ENGINE QUIT. THE PLT ATTEMPTED AN EMERGENCY LANDING ON THE BEACH BUT CRASHED IN THE WATER. THE ACFT ENGINE WAS NOT LOCATED FOR SEVERAL DAYS AFTER THE ACCIDENT. ACCORDING TO THE OPERATOR THE ENGINE FAILURE WAS DUE TO A BROKEN CRANK SHAFT.SALT WATER DAMAGE PRECLUDED AN ANALYSIS OF THE SHAFT FAILURE.
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: 4,136 hours in all; 1,000 in this make and model; 80 in the last 90 days; 40 in the last 30 days; 4,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,361 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 9, 1985; 13 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CDV Cordova AK at 12:45 pm
- Destination: Port Graham AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 15 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 43°F (6°C), dew point 10°F (-12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:30 am
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
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.