Amateur-built DHC-2 accident near Kenai, Alaska, November 7, 1989
On November 7, 1989, a amateur-built DHC-2, registered N64276, was substantially damaged in an accident near Kenai, Alaska (Kenai airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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
FAILURE OF THE ENGINE BEARING, WHICH RESULTED IN A SUBSEQUENT TOTAL LOSS OF POWER. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE: DARK NIGHT AND ROUGH/UNEVEN TERRAIN.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 7, 1989
- Place
- Kenai, Alaska · Kenai
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built DHC-2
- Registration
- N64276 · no longer on the register · serial 1025
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 6,800 hours in all; 3,000 in this make and model; 115 in the last 90 days; 55 in the last 30 days; 6,700 as pilot in command; 1,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,703 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 1989; 96 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,100 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-985-14B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: MRI Anchorage AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 1, 7,575 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 12°F (-11°C), dew point 7°F (-14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
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 N64276 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.