Piper PA-32-300 accident near Cold Bay, Alaska, January 30, 1988
On January 30, 1988 at about 3:25 pm local time, a Piper PA-32-300, registered N123TA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cold Bay, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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 30, 1988 · about 3:25 pm local time
- Place
- Cold Bay, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-300 · all PA-32-300s on the register
- Registration
- N123TA · registry record · serial 327940120
- 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 ATP CERTIFICATED PILOT IN COMMAND DEPARTED ON A SOLO, CARGO-ONLY AIR-TAXI FLIGHT AT 1104 A.K.S.T. FOR A DESTINATION 83SM TO THE N.E. THE PILOT WAS NORMALLY ASSIGNED TO COPILOT DUTIES ON A MULTI-ENGINED AIRPLANE, AND WAS NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE TERRAIN HE WAS FLYING OVER ON THIS FLIGHT. THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK RISING TERRAIN APPROXIMATELY 40SM N.E. OF THE DEPARTURE AIRPORT AND WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. THE PILOT SAYS HE DOES NOT RECALL THE FLIGHT PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT; HE SUFFERED MINOR INJURIES AND WAS KNOCKED UNCONSCIOUS DURING IMPACT. WEATHER CONDITIONS AT THE CRASH SITE ARE UNKNOWN, BUT A PILOT FLYING IN THE SAME GENERAL AREA SHORTLY AFTER THE ACCIDENT REPORTED LOCALIZED AREAS OF FOG AND SNOW THAT REDUCED VISIBILITY TO LESS THAN ONE-HALF MILE. THE PILOT WAS RECOVERED BY COAST GUARD SEARCH AND RESCUE PERSONNEL APPROXIMATELY 24 HOURS AFTER THE ACCIDENT.
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: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,725 hours in all; 147 in this make and model; 147 in the last 90 days; 4,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,121 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, December 31, 1987; 43 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1G5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CDB Cold Bay AK at 3:04 pm
- Destination: Z73 Nelson Lagoon AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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 N123TA 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.