Cessna T-207A accident near Coville Lake, Alaska, August 25, 1991
On August 25, 1991 at about 4:50 am local time, a Cessna T-207A, registered N73762, was substantially damaged in an accident near Coville Lake, Alaska. It was a business 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
A TOTAL FAILURE OF THE POWER OUTPUT SHAFT BOLTS DUE TO FATIGUE. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE ROUGH AND UNEVEN TERRAIN.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 25, 1991 · about 4:50 am local time
- Place
- Coville Lake, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna T-207A · all T-207As on the register
- Registration
- N73762 · no longer on the register · serial 624
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER AN EMERGENCY LANDING ON A SMALL LAKE, THE AIRPLANE WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED AND THE PILOT WAS NOT INJURED. EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED THE DRIVE SHAFT HAD BECOME DISCONNECTED FROM THE ENGINE DURING FLIGHT. FOUR OF THE FIVE DRIVE SHAFT COUPLING BOLTS FAILED DUE TO FATIGUE.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,000 hours in all; 900 in this make and model; 300 in the last 90 days; 100 in the last 30 days; 8,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,708 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 28, 1991; 61 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,000 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C-205 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 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.
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.