Cessna 150D accident near Chugiak, Alaska, January 13, 1988
On January 13, 1988 at about 3:30 pm local time, a Cessna 150D, registered N4379U, was substantially damaged in an accident near Chugiak, Alaska (Birchwood airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 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 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
- January 13, 1988 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Chugiak, Alaska · Birchwood · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 150D · all 150Ds on the register
- Registration
- N4379U · no longer on the register · serial 15060379
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR STATED THE STUDENT LANDED BACK ON THE RUNWAY AFTER A PRACTICE ENGINE FAILURE; AT THAT POINT THE FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR REALIZED HOW SLICK THE RUNWAY WAS AND THE AIRCRAFT EXITED THE DEPARTURE END OF THE RUNWAY INTO A SNOW BANK.
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: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,706 hours in all; 452 in this make and model; 89 in the last 90 days; 45 in the last 30 days; 1,514 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,926 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 3, 1987; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Ptarmigan Aviation
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 1, 4,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 90 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 8,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 23°F (-5°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.