Cessna 337 accident near Kustatan River, Alaska, July 31, 1990
On July 31, 1990 at about 6:00 am local time, a Cessna 337, registered N2271X, was substantially damaged in an accident near Kustatan River, 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
PILOT-IN-COMMAND'S FAILURE TO ASSURE THAT THE REAR ENGINE DEVELOPED FULL TAKEOFF POWER AND TO ATTAIN TAKEOFF AIRSPEED. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE THE TERRAIN CONDITIONS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 31, 1990 · about 6:00 am local time
- Place
- Kustatan River, Alaska
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 337 · all 337s on the register
- Registration
- N2271X · registry record · serial 3370171
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT REPORTED THAT RIGHT AFTER TAKEOFF FROM THE GRAVEL BAR HE '...FELT THE PLANE SLOW DOWN...AND SAW THE REAR RPM WAS DROPING...' THE TAKEOFF WAS ABORTED AND THE NOSE GEAR SEPARATED DURING THE TOUCHDOWN IN SOFT TERRAIN.
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
- Flight time: 921 hours in all; 271 in this make and model; 195 in the last 90 days; 97 in the last 30 days; 834 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,584 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 15, 1989; 124 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,200 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-360-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: Anchorage AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 35 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 5,000 ft; clear
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 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.
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 ANC90LA128.