Cessna 207A incident near Takslesuk Lake, Alaska, April 14, 1988
On April 14, 1988 at about 11:10 pm local time, a Cessna 207A, registered N73188, suffered minor damage in an incident near Takslesuk Lake, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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
- April 14, 1988 · about 11:10 pm local time
- Place
- Takslesuk Lake, Alaska
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 207A · all 207As on the register
- Registration
- N73188 · no longer on the register · serial 20700568
- 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 SCHEDULED COMMUTER FLIGHT, FRIENDSHIP FLIGHT 305, WAS EN ROUTE FROM CHEVAK, ALASKA TO BETHEL, ALASKA. DURING CRUISE FLIGHT, THE AIRPLANE EXPERIENCED AN ENGINE FAILURE RESULTING A A FORCED LANDING ON ROUGH, SNOW COVERED TERRAIN. THE PILOT-IN-COMMAND STATED HE SAW A CONNECTING ROD RESTING IN THE BOTTOM OF THE ENGINE COWLING AND THE ENGINE CRANKCASE HAD A GAPING HOLE IN ITS SIDE.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,500 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Unknown (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,668 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, April 4, 1988; 31 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F11 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Chevak AK
- Destination: BET Bethel AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,500 ft; scat at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:10 pm from BET
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 N73188 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.