Cessna 207 accident near Kivalina, Alaska, December 28, 1988
On December 28, 1988 at about 1:20 pm local time, a Cessna 207, registered N9651M, was substantially damaged in an accident near Kivalina, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 28, 1988 · about 1:20 pm local time
- Place
- Kivalina, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 207 · all 207s on the register
- Registration
- N9651M · registry record · serial 207-0075
- 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 AIR TAXI PILOT WAS ON A SCHEDULED CARGO FLIGHT TO A REMOTE VILLAGE IN WESTERN ALASKA WHEN HE REPORTEDLY HAD A PARTIAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER. HE SAID THAT HE WAS UNABLE TO MAINTAIN ALTITUDE AND MADE A FORCED LANDING ON A FROZEN LAKE. HE IS UNCERTAIN WHY THE ENGINE HAD A LOSS OF POWER, AND THE REMOTENESS OF THE CRASH SITE AND EXTREME WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS HAD PRECLUDED RECOVERY OF THE AIRPLANE FOR EXAMINATION. AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT, THE PILOT REPORTED THE WEATHER AS 4,000' OVERCAST WITH 8 MILES VISIBILITY. OTHER PILOTS FLYING IN THE SAME GENERAL AREA REPORTED THE WEATHER AS MUCH WORSE, BORDERING ON INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS.
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
- Flight time: 22,760 hours in all; 8,028 in this make and model; 334 in the last 90 days; 84 in the last 30 days; 22,528 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 42,856 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, December 16, 1988; 293 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Baker Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: OTZ Kotzebue AK at 12:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, bright
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 4,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 19°F (-7°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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 N9651M the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ANC89LA029.