Piper PA-18 accident near Sheep Mountain, Alaska, July 12, 1987
On July 12, 1987 at about 3:45 am local time, a Piper PA-18, registered N159T, was substantially damaged in an accident near Sheep Mountain, Alaska (Sheep Mountain airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 12, 1987 · about 3:45 am local time · cases in 1987
- Place
- Sheep Mountain, Alaska · Sheep Mountain · cases near this airport
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-18 · all PA-18s on the register
- Registration
- N159T · registry record · serial 18-2273
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT AND HIS TWO PASSENGERS TOOK OFF IN A TWO PLACE PIPER PA-18 FROM A GLACIER AFTER DOING REPAIR WORK ON AN AIRCRAFT THAT HAD CRASHED THERE EARLIER. WEATHER CONDITIONS WERE DETERIORATING AS THEY APPROACHED THEIR DESTINATION AIRSTRIP LOCATED IN A NEARBY MOUNTAIN PASS. THE CEILING WAS ESTIMATED AT 200 FEET AGL, AND VISIBILITY AS BETWEEN 1/2 AND 3 MILES. THE PILOT SAID THAT HE FELT INTIMIDATED BY THE LOW CLOUDS AND RISING TERRAIN SURROUNDING THE AIRSTRIP AND THAT HE INADVERTENTLY STALLED THE AIRCRAFT WHILE TURNING FROM DOWNWIND TO BASE LEG.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 872 hours in all; 38 in this make and model; 45 in the last 90 days; 795 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (expired)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 15, 1986; 50 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Matanuska Gal AK at 9:55 pm
- Destination: SMU Sheep Mt. Lodge AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 22, 2,200 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 7 knots
- Sky: overcast at 200 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 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 N159T the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N159T on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Piper PA-18 Super Cub 3,620 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Piper 44,842 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 27,303 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Sheep Mountain Airport · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Alaska 5,932 since 1982 · 825 in the last ten years
- Alaska 9,142 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N159T 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC87FA095.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.