Piper PA-31-350 incident near Nome, Alaska, January 15, 1991
On January 15, 1991 at about 11:52 pm local time, a Piper PA-31-350, registered N4118G, suffered minor damage in an incident near Nome, Alaska (Nome airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
WAS THE SHEARED FITTING ON THE NOSE GEAR ACTUATOR SHUTTLE VALVE WHICH CAUSED THE NOSE GEAR TO NOT EXTEND FOR LANDING.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 15, 1991 · about 11:52 pm local time
- Place
- Nome, Alaska · Nome · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-31-350 · all PA-31-350s on the register
- Registration
- N4118G · registry record · serial 31-8453001
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING FINAL APPROACH, THE PILOT COULD NOT GET THE NOSE GEAR DOWN AND LOCKED, SO HE ELECTED TO LAND ON THE RUNWAY ON THE MAIN GEAR ONLY. EXAMINATION OF THE LANDING GEAR REVEALED A SHEARED FITTING ON THE NOSE GEAR ACTUATOR SHUTTLE VALVE.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 11,717 hours in all; 5,000 in this make and model; 220 in the last 90 days; 80 in the last 30 days; 11,500 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,818 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, January 9, 1991; 13 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,000 lb
- Seats: 12
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TIO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SVA Savoonga AK at 11:20 pm
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 27, 6,001 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: -20°F (-29°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 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.
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.