Cessna 177RG accident near Hinchinbrook Is, Alaska, August 19, 1986
On August 19, 1986 at about 9:30 pm local time, a Cessna 177RG, registered N52137, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hinchinbrook Is, Alaska (Cordova airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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 19, 1986 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Hinchinbrook Is, Alaska · Cordova
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 177RG · all 177RGs on the register
- Registration
- N52137 · no longer on the register · serial 177RG1176
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT 1323 ADT, THE PLT RPRTD NEAR HINCHINBROOK ISLAND & REQUESTED CLEARANCE FOR AN NDB-A APCH TO THE CORDOVA MILE 13 ARPT. ABOUT 3 MIN LATER, CORDOVA FSS PROVIDED CLEARANCE FOR THE APCH 'FROM OVER HINCHINBROOK.' RADAR DATA SHOWED THAT THE ACFT FLEW TO THE JOHNSTONE POINT (JOH) VOR, THEN BEGAN TRACKING ON A SSE HEADING TOWARD THE SUBSEQUENT ACCIDENT SITE. THE ACFT IMPACTED NEAR THE TOP OF A MTN AT AN ELEV OF ABOUT 2000 FT, APRX 10 MI SSE OF THE JOH VOR. FOR THE JOH TRANSITION (TO THE NDB-A APCH), THE PLT SHOULD HAVE TRACKED OUTBOUND FROM THE VOR FOR 15.5 MI ON A HEADING OF 083 DEG, WITH A MIN ALT OF 4000 FT, TO THE HINCHINBROOK INITIAL APCH FIX (IAP).
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,532 hours in all; 500 in this make and model; 57 in the last 90 days; 1,526 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,002 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 3, 1986; 93 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A1B6D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HOM Homer AK at 7:23 pm
- Destination: CDV Cordova AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 6 knots
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:50 pm from CDV, 30 miles away
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.
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.