Cessna A185F accident near Amber Bay, Alaska, October 6, 1991
On October 6, 1991 at about 3:00 am local time, a Cessna A185F, registered N1681R, was substantially damaged in an accident near Amber Bay, Alaska. 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
THE PILOT'S LOSS OF DIRECTIONAL CONTROL DURING THE LANDING ROLL. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE UNFAVORABLE WIND.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 6, 1991 · about 3:00 am local time
- Place
- Amber Bay, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A185F · all A185Fs on the register
- Registration
- N1681R · no longer on the register · serial 18502404
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIR TAXI PILOT STATED THAT WHEN HE WAS ABOUT 200 FEET INTO THE LANDING ROLL ON THE BEACH, THE AIRPLANE'S LEFT WING ABRUPTLY LIFTED AND THE AIRPLANE NOSED OVER. HE THOUGHT THE APPROXIMATELY 10 KNOT LEFT CROSSWIND HAD BRIEFLY CHANGED TO A TAILWIND.
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: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 14,848 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 180 in the last 90 days; 90 in the last 30 days; 14,800 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,000 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 30, 1991; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Windy'S Mag Air, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: 5NJ Naknek AK at 8:00 pm
- Destination: NONE Amber Bay AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.