Cessna 402 accident near Anchorage, Alaska, April 2, 1987
On April 2, 1987 at about 1:30 am local time, a Cessna 402, registered N967JW, was substantially damaged in an accident near Anchorage, Alaska (Merrill airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed. 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
- April 2, 1987 · about 1:30 am local time
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · Merrill · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 402 · all 402s on the register
- Registration
- N967JW · no longer on the register · serial 4020067
- 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 ACFT WAS ON THE LAST LEG OF A SCHEDULED COMMUTER FLIGHT, WHEN IT CRASHED IN A HEAVILY WOODED AREA WHILE MAKING A VFR APPROACH TO MERRILL FIELD, ANCHORAGE, AK. THE CAPT AND HIS SOLE PASSENGER WERE KILLED IN THE CRASH WHEN THE AIRPLANE STRUCK THE GROUND UPSIDE-DOWN IN A NEAR VERTICAL ATTITUDE. THE AIRPLANE'S COPILOT, WHO HAD DEPLANED MINUTES BEFORE THE ACCIDENT FLIGHT, SAID HE DID NOT SEE THE CAPT USE THE AIRCRAFT'S AUXILIARY FUEL TANKS AT ANY TIME DURING THAT EVENING'S EARLIER FLIGHTS. THE AIRPLANE'S MAIN FUEL TANKS HOLD 100 GALLONS OF USEABLE FUEL; IT IS ESTIMATED THAT THE AIRPLANE WOULD HAVE CONSUMED SLIGHTLY MORE THAN 100 GALLONS OF FUEL AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. AMPLE FUEL REMAINED IN THE AUXILIARY TANKS, BUT AN ENGINE RESTART CANNOT BE READILY ACCOMPLISHED IF THE AUXILIARY TANKS ARE NOT SELECTED PRIOR TO THE ENGINE'S QUITTING.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,577 hours in all; 210 in this make and model; 3,400 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 10, 1987; 92 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-E (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 24, 4,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 060° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 36°F (2°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:39 am from MRI, 1 miles away
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.