Piper PA-32-300 accident near Juneau, Alaska, June 18, 1993
On June 18, 1993 at about 10:30 pm local time, a Piper PA-32-300, registered N30505, was substantially damaged in an accident near Juneau, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person had minor injuries; 5 others were unhurt. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT CONTINUING VFR FLIGHT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS. FACTORS WHICH CONTRIBUTED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN, THE CLOUDY WEATHER CONDITIONS IN THE PASS, THE PILOT BECOMING DISORIENTED, HIS LACK OF FAMILIARITY WITH THE AREA, THE COMPANY'S INADEQUATE PROCEDURES CONCERNING MOUNTAIN OPERATIONS, AND INSUFFICIENT STANDARDS SET BY THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 18, 1993 · about 10:30 pm local time
- Place
- Juneau, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 5 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-300 PA-32=300 · all PA-32-300s on the register
- Registration
- N30505 · registry record · serial 32-7840199
- 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 PILOT STATED HE WAS FOLLOWING A COMPANY AIRPLANE, WHICH WAS 3-5 MI AHEAD, THROUGH A PASS. HE LOST SIGHT OF THE AIRPLANE, FLEW THROUGH THE WRONG PASS AND ENTERED CLOUDS. HE STARTED A 180-DEG TURN, SLOWED THE AIRPLANE AND BEGAN A DESCENT. UPON SEEING THE SNOW COVERED GLACIER, HE LANDED ON THE SURFACE. THE PASS HE WAS SUPPOSED TO FLY THROUGH WAS TO HIS RIGHT, AND HE DID NOT MAKE THE RIGHT TURN. HE FLEW STRAIGHT AHEAD INTO A CANYON. THE CHIEF PILOT HAD FLOWN A TRAINING FLIGHT WITH THE PILOT AND SHOWED HIM THE PASS AND PROCEDURES TO BE USED. THE COMPANY REQUIRES THEIR PILOTS TO WATCH A VIDEO OUTLINING THE COMPANY POLICY AND PROCEDURES FOR MOUNTAIN FLYING AND PASS PENETRATION. THE COMPANY'S TRAINING MANUAL SHOWS NO REFERENCE TO TRAINING IN MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN OR MOUNTAIN PASS OPERATION, NOR DOES IT REFERENCE THE VIDEO. IN ADDITION, THE COMPANY OPERATIONS MANUAL DOES NOT ADDRESS MINIMUM WEATHER OPERATIONS, MOUNTAIN OPERATIONS, OR MOUNTAIN PASS OPERATIONS.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 963 hours in all; 75 in this make and model; 160 in the last 90 days; 73 in the last 30 days; 871 as pilot in command; 238 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,594 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 1, 1993; 39 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-KIGS (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SGY Skagway AK at 6:15 pm
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 4 |
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 N30505 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.