Cessna 172 accident near Chickaloon Flat, Alaska, August 6, 1985
On August 6, 1985 at about 2:30 am local time, a Cessna 172, registered N61684, was substantially damaged in an accident near Chickaloon Flat, Alaska. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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
- August 6, 1985 · about 2:30 am local time
- Place
- Chickaloon Flat, Alaska
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 · all 172s on the register
- Registration
- N61684 · registry record · serial 17264728
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT MADE AN OFF-ARPT LANDING ON AN AREA OF CLAY SILT WITH SPARSE GRASS. AFTER SLOWING THE ACFT TO ABOUT 20 TO 25 MPH, THE NOSEWHEEL WENT INTO A SHALLOW GULLY OF SOFT CLAY. THE ACFT THEN STOPPED ABRUPTLY & NOSED OVER.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,190 hours in all; 232 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 1,130 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,250 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 22, 1985; 33 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MRI Anchorage AK at 9:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
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.
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.