Cessna 404 incident near St Marys, Alaska, June 21, 1986
On June 21, 1986 at about 8:30 pm local time, a Cessna 404, registered N4450M, suffered minor damage in an incident near St Marys, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 4 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 incident. 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
- June 21, 1986 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- St Marys, Alaska · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 404 · all 404s on the register
- Registration
- N4450M · registry record · serial 4040833
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING THE DESCENT INTO ST. MARY'S, ALASKA, THE DOOR AJAR WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE PILOT-IN-COMMAND CHECKED THE REAR DOOR AND THEN THE FRONT CREW DOOR. WHEN THE HANDLE OF THE CREW DOOR WAS RETOUCHED IT FLEW OPEN AND DEPARTED THE AIRPLANE TAKING ABOUT ONE SQUARE FOOT OF THE CABIN ROOF WITH IT. THE PILOT SLOWED THE AIRPLANE DOWN AND LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,300 hours in all; 100 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,430 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 16, 1986
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental GTSIO-520-M (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BET Bethel AK
- Destination: KSM St. Marys AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 90 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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 N4450M the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ANC86IA088.