Cessna 180 accident near Wasilla, Alaska, October 2, 1988
On October 2, 1988 at about 4:25 am local time, a Cessna 180, registered N420SB, was substantially damaged in an accident near Wasilla, Alaska. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 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
- October 2, 1988 · about 4:25 am local time
- Place
- Wasilla, Alaska
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 180 · all 180s on the register
- Registration
- N420SB · registry record · serial 18052313
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DRG ARRIVAL TO LAND ON A LAKE AT NIGHT, THE PLT BEGAN A 180 DEG TURN FROM A NE HEADING AT APRX 500' AGL TO A FINAL APCH ON A SW HEADING. AS THE ACFT WAS IN THE TURN, IT BEGAN LOSING ALTITUDE RAPIDLY. THE PLT APPLIED POWER TO STOP THE DESCENT, BUT THE ACFT STRUCK TREES AT THE EDGE OF THE LAKE. THE PLT SAID THE ACFT'S FORWARD MOTION HAD BEEN NEARLY STOPPED BY THE TREES BY THE TIME IT DROPPED & CAME TO REST AT THE EDGE OF THE LAKE.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,544 hours in all; 1,100 in this make and model; 146 in the last 90 days; 55 in the last 30 days; 2,540 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,337 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 3, 1988; 77 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Lake Iliamna AK at 8:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 170° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 45°F (7°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
Other NTSB records under N420SB 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.