Amateur-built DHC-3 accident near Juneau, Alaska, June 23, 1994
On June 23, 1994 at about 4:15 am local time, a amateur-built DHC-3, registered N13GA, 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). 7 people were killed and 4 people were seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
VFR FLIGHT BY THE PILOT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC), AND HIS FAILURE TO MAINTAIN ALTITUDE (CLEARANCE) ABOVE THE SURFACE OF THE RIVER. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS, AND THE SURFACE CONDITION OF THE RIVER (GLASSY WATER).
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 23, 1994 · about 4:15 am local time
- Place
- Juneau, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 7 people were killed and 4 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built DHC-3
- Registration
- N13GA · no longer on the register · serial 179
- 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
FIVE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED A LODGE, ONE BEHIND THE OTHER. FOG AND DRIZZLE WERE ENCOUNTERED, AND THE PILOT OF THE FIRST AIRCRAFT RADIOED TO THE PILOTS OF THE OTHER AIRCRAFT TO CROSS THE RIVER TO THE EAST SHORELINE. A PASSENGER IN THE FOURTH AIRCRAFT (N13GA) STATED THAT WHEN THE AIRCRAFT WAS OVER THE MIDDLE OF THE RIVER, SHE COULD NOT SEE EITHER SHORE DUE TO FOG. THE PILOT OF N13GA (A FLOATPLANE) STATED THAT HE ENCOUNTERED DETERIORATING WEATHER & STARTED A DESCENT, INTENDING TO MAKE A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING. HE BEGAN TO LEVEL, EXPECTING CONDITIONS TO IMPROVE. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE FLOATPLANE HIT THE SURFACE OF 'GLASSY WATER' AND CRASHED.
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; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,000 hours in all; 400 in this make and model; 260 in the last 90 days; 60 in the last 30 days; 12,000 as pilot in command; 1,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,672 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 5, 1994; 64 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,967 lb
- Seats: 11
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Taku Lodge AK at 11:00 pm
- Destination: AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 7 | 3 |
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 N13GA 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.