Cessna 206 accident near Deadhorse, Alaska, May 17, 1993
On May 17, 1993 at about 11:45 pm local time, a Cessna 206, registered N734GW, was substantially damaged in an accident near Deadhorse, Alaska (Deadhorse airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT'S POOR JUDGMENT IN ATTEMPTING TO LAND UNDER THE EXISTING HIGH WIND CONDITION.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 17, 1993 · about 11:45 pm local time
- Place
- Deadhorse, Alaska · Deadhorse · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 206 · all 206s on the register
- Registration
- N734GW · registry record · serial U20604832
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
UPON CLEARING THE RUNWAY ONTO THE MID-FIELD TAXIWAY AND TURNING CROSSWIND, THE AIRPLANE NOSED OVER AND CAME TO REST OFF THE SIDE OF THE TAXIWAY. JUST PRIOR TO LANDING THE PILOT WAS GIVEN THE WINDS AS 35 KTS GUSTING TO 43 KTS.
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 engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 18,000 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 90 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 16,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, April 9, 1993; 60 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: 40 Mile Air, LTD
The flight
- Departed from: AK71 Lonely AK at 5:30 pm
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 4, 6,499 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 100° at 30 knots, gusting 46
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 500 ft; not recorded at 500 ft
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:45 pm from SCC
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.
Other NTSB records under N734GW 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.