Piper PA-31-350 accident near Nightmute, Alaska, May 7, 1987
On May 7, 1987 at about 10:15 pm local time, a Piper PA-31-350, registered N54265, was destroyed in an accident near Nightmute, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was 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
- May 7, 1987 · about 10:15 pm local time
- Place
- Nightmute, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-31-350 · all PA-31-350s on the register
- Registration
- N54265 · no longer on the register · serial 317405213
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED WHEN THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK A 350 FOOT HIGH HILL ALONG ITS ROUTE. THIS FLIGHT WAS A PART 135 ON-DEMAND AIR TAXI CARGO FLIGHT. SEVERAL OTHER AIR TAXI OPERATORS AND COMPANY AIRCRAFT ELECTED TO CANCEL THEIR FLIGHTS. BOTH GROUND REPORTS AND PILOT REPORTS STATED THE WEATHER IN THE AREA OF THE ACCIDENT WAS CEILINGS BELOW 500 FEET AND VISIBILITY LESS THAN ONE MILE.
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, commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land
- Flight time: 7,040 hours in all; 20 in this make and model; 20 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 6,531 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,750 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 3, 1987; 12 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,315 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TI0-540-J2BD (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: BET Bethel AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
Other NTSB records under N54265 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.