Cessna 337D accident near Kenai, Alaska, April 23, 1988
On April 23, 1988 at about 6:28 pm local time, a Cessna 337D, registered N86128, was substantially damaged in an accident near Kenai, Alaska (Swanson River 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
- April 23, 1988 · about 6:28 pm local time
- Place
- Kenai, Alaska · Swanson River · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 337D · all 337Ds on the register
- Registration
- N86128 · no longer on the register · serial 3371089
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PRIVATE PILOT WAS PRACTICING SIMULATED INSTRUMENT FLIGHT WITH HIS FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR IN THEIR MUTUALLY-OWNED AIRPLANE, WHEN BOTH ENGINES QUIT WITHIN MINUTES OF EACH OTHER DUE TO FUEL EXHAUSTION. THE AIRPLANE STRUCK TREES IN THE ENSUING EMERGENCY DESCENT PRIOR TO REACHING THE SELECTED LANDING AREA AND WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. NEITHER OF THE PILOTS WERE INJURED. THE FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR HAD CONDUCTED THE PREFLIGHT INSPECTION, AND HAD VISUALLY INSPECTED THE FUEL TANKS PRIOR TO THE START OF THE FLIGHT, AND ALTHOUGH THE TANKS WERE LESS THAN FULL, HE FELT THAT A SUFFICIENT QUANTITY REMAINED FOR THE INTENDED FLIGHT. BOTH PILOTS SAID THAT THE FUEL GAUGES INDICATED ONE-QUARTER FULL WHEN THE ENGINES STOPPED.
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: private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land
- Flight time: 318 hours in all; 158 in this make and model; 26 in the last 90 days; 281 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,662 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 9, 1987; 43 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,430 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-360-C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MRI Anchorage AK at 11:48 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Temperature: 41°F (5°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:52 pm from ENA, 17 miles away
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.