Cessna 207 accident near Jakolok Bay, Alaska, July 4, 1985
On July 4, 1985 at about 6:15 pm local time, a Cessna 207, registered N1686U, was substantially damaged in an accident near Jakolok Bay, Alaska (Jakolof Bay airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 6 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
- July 4, 1985 · about 6:15 pm local time
- Place
- Jakolok Bay, Alaska · Jakolof Bay
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 6 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 207 · all 207s on the register
- Registration
- N1686U · no longer on the register · serial 20700286
- 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
PLT LANDED SHORT OF GRAVEL BEACH AND SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED AIRPLANE ON LARGE ROCKS.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 14,600 hours in all; 14,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,700 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, June 1, 1985
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HOM Homer AK at 1:00 pm
- Destination: 4Z9 Jakolof Bay AK
- Runway 1, 1,200 ft by 40 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,000 ft; scat at 300 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 6:55 pm
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 5 |
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 N1686U 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.