Cessna 207 accident near Perde Bay, Alaska, October 10, 1988
On October 10, 1988 at about 6:36 pm local time, a Cessna 207, registered N9965M, was substantially damaged in an accident near Perde Bay, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 5 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 10, 1988 · about 6:36 pm local time
- Place
- Perde Bay, Alaska
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 207 · all 207s on the register
- Registration
- N9965M · no longer on the register · serial 20700767
- 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 PILOT EXPERIENCED A POWER LOSS DURING CRUISE FLIGHT AND DURING HIS DESCENT THE ENGINE STOPPED PRODUCING POWER. HE LANDED ON THE TUNDRA AND THE AIRPLANE WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. AN ENGINE TEARDOWN REVEALED THAT THE NUMBER 4 PISTON WAS BURNED PAST COMPRESSION RING, WHICH PRESSURIZED THE CASE AND FORCED THE OIL OUT. THE ENG THEN SEIZED.
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, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,700 hours in all; 1,200 in this make and model; 230 in the last 90 days; 80 in the last 30 days; 2,600 as pilot in command; 30 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 1, 1988; 18 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Cape Smyth Air Services INC.
The flight
- Departed from: BRW Barrow AK at 2:00 pm
- Destination: PHO Point Hope AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 5°F (-15°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 4 |
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.