Cessna 185 accident near Aleknagik, Alaska, December 20, 1985
On December 20, 1985 at about 9:00 pm local time, a Cessna 185, registered N4520F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Aleknagik, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 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
- December 20, 1985 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Aleknagik, Alaska
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 185 · all 185s on the register
- Registration
- N4520F · registry record · serial 1005
- 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 PILOT STATED THAT ON LANDING AT A FROZEN LAKE HE LOST CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT CAUSING THE PLANE TO GROUND LOOP. THE AIRCRAFT THEN STRUCK A SNOW BANK ON THE BEACH.
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
- Flight time: 26,800 hours in all; 6,000 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 100 in the last 30 days; 26,800 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,956 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection; 56 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DLG Dillingham AK at 8:45 pm
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 090° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,000 ft; clear
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
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.