Cessna A185F accident near Denali Nat'L Pk, Alaska, July 21, 1993
On July 21, 1993 at about 4:00 am local time, a Cessna A185F, registered N124KT, was destroyed in an accident near Denali Nat'L Pk, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 4 people were seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FUEL EXAUSTION DUE TO THE THE PILOT-IN-COMMAND'S FAILURE TO REFUEL. FACTORS IN THE ACCIDENT WERE: PRESSURE BY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL AND LACK OF SUITABLE TERRAIN DURING THE FORCED LANDING.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 21, 1993 · about 4:00 am local time
- Place
- Denali Nat'L Pk, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A185F · all A185Fs on the register
- Registration
- N124KT · registry record · serial 18503765
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE FLIGHT HAD LANDED AT THE 5,600-FT LEVEL OF RUTH GLACIER FOR A 20 MIN TOURIST STOPOVER. ANOTHER FLIGHT, FLOWN BY A COMPANY SENIOR PILOT, ALSO HAD LANDED. THE SENIOR PILOT NOTICED A FUEL TANK FILLER CAP HANGING LOOSE ON THE ACCIDENT AIRPLANE, AND THE TWO PILOTS MEASURED THE FUEL IN THE TANKS. ONE TANK WAS FOUND EMPTY. THE PILOTS DETERMINED THAT THE AIRPLANE SHOULD BE FLOWN OFF THE GLACIER 'TO VERIFY THE FUEL LEVEL ON THE GAUGES IN LEVEL FLIGHT ATTITUDE, AND THAT IF HE (THE ACCIDENT PILOT) HAD ANY DOUBT ABOUT SUFFICIENT FUEL QUANTITY, TO RETURN (TO THE GLACIER) AND WE'D BRING HIM FUEL.' ABOUT 3 MIN AFTER TAKEOFF THE ENGINE QUIT AND THE FLIGHT MADE A CRASH LANDING AT THE 2,800-FT ELEVATION. THE PASSENGERS STATED THAT THE PILOT TOLD THEM TO 'TIGHTEN (OR FASTEN) YOUR SEATBELTS' DURING THE ENGINE-OUT DESCENT. NO PASSENGER COULD RECALL KNOWING THAT IMPACT WAS IMMINENT. THE RIGHT TANK WAS FOUND EMPTY, AND THE LEFT TANK CONTAINED 2-5 GALS. A PASSENGER STATED THAT THE RIGHT TANK WAS INDICATING EMPTY ON THE TRIP TO THE GLACIER FROM TALKEETNA.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: glider; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 9,765 hours in all; 127 in this make and model; 125 in the last 90 days; 81 in the last 30 days; 9,729 as pilot in command; 7,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,408 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 2, 1993; 76 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D30B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Ruth Glacier AK at 11:00 pm
- Destination: TKA Talkeetna AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 20,000 ft
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 | 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.
Other NTSB records under N124KT the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.