Piper PA-32-301 accident near Ivanof Bay, Alaska, October 23, 1988
On October 23, 1988 at about 6:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-32-301, registered N8402S, was substantially damaged in an accident near Ivanof Bay, Alaska (Ivanoff Bay Seaplane Base airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 23, 1988 · about 6:00 pm local time · cases in 1988
- Place
- Ivanof Bay, Alaska · Ivanoff Bay Seaplane Base
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-301 · all PA-32-301s on the register
- Registration
- N8402S · registry record · serial 32-810675
- 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 WAS ATTEMPTING TO LAND ON A 30 FOOT WIDE, 1200 FOOT GRAVEL STRIP IN GUSTY WIND CONDITIONS. HE SAID JUST PRIOR TO TOUCHDOWN, THE AIRPLANE ENCOUNTERED A STRONG GUST OF WIND RESULTING IN A HARD LANDING SHORT OF THE RUNWAY. THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,400 hours in all; 1,050 in this make and model; 450 in the last 90 days; 80 in the last 30 days; 2,400 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,566 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 30, 1988; 67 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1G5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PTH Port Heiden AK
- Destination: Ivanof Bay AK
- Runway 0, 1,200 ft by 30 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 315° at 15 knots, gusting 30
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 10:00 am
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 N8402S the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N8402S on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Piper PA-32 Cherokee Six, Lance and Saratoga 3,916 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Piper 44,840 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1G5 48 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Port Heiden Airport · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Alaska 5,932 since 1982 · 823 in the last ten years
- Alaska 9,144 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N8402S 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC89LA013.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.