Nihon YS-11A-600 incident near Anchorage, Alaska, March 27, 1991
On March 27, 1991 at about 8:23 pm local time, a Nihon YS-11A-600, registered N173RV, suffered minor damage in an incident near Anchorage, Alaska (Anchorage airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A JAMMED NOSE GEAR DUE TO INCORRECT INSTALLATION OF THE SHEAR PIN. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE INSUFFICIENTLY DEFINED MAINTENANCE PROCEDURE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 27, 1991 · about 8:23 pm local time · cases in 1991
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · Anchorage · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Nihon YS-11A-600
- Registration
- N173RV · registry record · serial 2173
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE CREW OF FOUR WERE ON A TRAINING FLIGHT AND WERE PREPARING TO PERFORM APPROACH TO LANDING STALLS. DURING THE MANEUVER, THEY NOTICED THE NOSE GEAR WOULD NOT EXTEND. UNABLE TO EXTEND THE NOSE GEAR, THEY LANDED WITH THE NOSE GEAR UP CAUSING MINOR DAMAGE TO THE AIRPLANE. SUBSEQUENT EXAMINATION REVEALED THAT THE RIVETS WHICH RETAIN THE CENTERING CAM SHEAR PINS WERE SHEARED. THE SHEAR PINS WERE NOT SHEARED. AN EXAMINATION BY MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, NAGOYA AIRPLANE WORKS, INDICATED THAT THE SHEAR PINS MAY HAVE BEEN INSTALLED IN REVERSE. THE OVERHAUL MANUAL ALSO CONTAINED AMBIGUOUS INFORMATION CONCERNING THE INFORMATION. THE GRAPHICAL DISPLAY SHOWED THE INSTALLATION INCORRECTLY, BUT THE TEXT EXPLAINED THE INSTALLATION CORRECTLY.
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, commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,000 hours in all; 4,694 in this make and model; 125 in the last 90 days; 39 in the last 30 days; 2,788 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 19,730 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, January 27, 1991; 126 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 55,110 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rolls-Royce 542-10K (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Reeve Aleutian Airways, INC.
The flight
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 6, 10,600 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 4,000 ft; scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:23 pm from ANC, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 4 |
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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N173RV on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Engine: Rolls-Royce 542-10K · as the NTSB recorded it
- Ted Stevens Anchorage International · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Alaska 5,932 since 1982 · 823 in the last ten years
- Alaska 9,143 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC91IA046.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.