Piper PA-31-350 incident near Barter Island, Alaska, February 4, 1987
On February 4, 1987 at about 9:15 pm local time, a Piper PA-31-350, registered N35232, suffered minor damage in an incident near Barter Island, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 3 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
- February 4, 1987 · about 9:15 pm local time
- Place
- Barter Island, Alaska · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-31-350 · all PA-31-350s on the register
- Registration
- N35232 · registry record · serial 7952119
- 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
THE PILOT FLEW INTO RISING TERRAIN DURING A NIGHT VFR FLIGHT. AFTER SHUTTING DOWN THE RIGHT ENGINE AND ACHIEVING ONLY PARTIAL PROPELLER FEATHER HE ELECTED TO MAKE A GEAR UP LANDING. THE PLT WAS FLYING AT 500 FT AGL WHEN HE WANDERED FROM OVER WATER TO ON-SHORE AND HIS RT PROP HIT THE RISING SHORE. EXCESSIVE VIBRATION NECESSITATED AN ENG SHUT DOWN BUT THE PROP DID NOT FULLY FEATHER BEFORE THE ENG STOPPED. THE LANDING WAS UNEVENTFUL. THE PLT ACTIVATED THE ELT FOR RESCUE.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 8,057 hours in all; 1,210 in this make and model; 140 in the last 90 days; 7,780 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,350 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection; 13 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,000 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TIO-540-J2BD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BTI Barter Island AK
- Destination: SCC Deadhorse AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: -15°F (-26°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.