Cessna 310 accident near Teller, Alaska, January 18, 1993
On January 18, 1993 at about 12:50 pm local time, a Cessna 310, registered N1776G, was destroyed in an accident near Teller, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT-IN-COMMAND'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN AN ADEQUATE TERRAIN AVOIDANCE ALTITUDE. FACTORS WHICH CONTRIBUTED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE THE DARK NIGHT AND FEATURELESS SNOW COVERED TERRAIN, BOTH WHICH CREATED A 'FEATURELESS TERRAIN ILLUSION' WHICH PROBABLY LED THE PILOT TO VISUALLY OVERESTIMATE HIS ALTITUDE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 18, 1993 · about 12:50 pm local time
- Place
- Teller, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310 · all 310s on the register
- Registration
- N1776G · registry record · serial 310R0043
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH NEARLY LEVEL TERRAIN ABOUT 3 MI SE OF THE DESTINATION AIRPORT. THE TERRAIN WAS SNOW COVERED, FEATURELESS, UNILLUMINATED, AND THE NIGHT SKY WAS VERY DARK. THE AIRPORT IS NOT SERVED BY ANY NAVIGATION AIDS. NAVIGATION IN THE AREA IS DONE BY 'PILOTAGE.' WITNESS REPORTS INDICATED THE VISIBILITY OF GROUND REFERENCE OBJECTS WAS NOT POSSIBLE DUE TO THE TOTAL DARKNESS AND LACK OF CONTRAST WITH COMPLETE SNOW COVERED TERRAIN. THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED PRIOR TO THE ONSET OF CIVIL TWILIGHT. NO RECORD OF PRE-DAWN COMPANY FLIGHTS BY THE PILOT DURING THE PAST 90 DAYS WERE FOUND. CESSNA AIRCRAFT COMPANY PROVIDES A WARNING 'FEATURELESS TERRAIN ILLUSION, AN ABSENCE OF GROUND FEATURES, AS WHEN LANDING OVER WATER, DARKENED AREAS AND TERRAIN MADE 'FEATURELESS BY SNOW' CAN CREATE THE ILLUSION THAT THE AIRPLANE IS AT A HIGHER ALTITUDE THAN IT ACTUALLY IS. THE PILOT WHO DOES NOT RECOGNIZE THIS ILLUSION WILL TEND TO FLY A LOWER APPROACH.'
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 12,368 hours in all; 1,127 in this make and model; 192 in the last 90 days; 39 in the last 30 days; 11,768 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,914 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 11, 1993; 12 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,500 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-M (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Olson Air Service, INC
The flight
- Departed from: OME Nome AK at 12:25 pm
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: -33°F (-36°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 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.