Amateur-built DHC-2 accident near Port Alsworth, Alaska, August 12, 1994
On August 12, 1994 at about 1:00 am local time, a amateur-built DHC-2, registered N17394, was destroyed in an accident near Port Alsworth, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 3 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
IMPROPER IN-FLIGHT PLANNING/DECISION BY THE PILOT, AND HIS FAILURE TO REMAIN CLEAR OF MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN. THE BOX/BLIND CANYON AND PROXIMITY OF MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN WERE RELATED FACTORS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 12, 1994 · about 1:00 am local time
- Place
- Port Alsworth, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built DHC-2
- Registration
- N17394 · no longer on the register · serial 495
- 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 PLANE WAS OBSERVED TO ENTER A VALLEY WITH MOUNTAINS ON BOTH SIDES. WHILE THE PILOT WAS MANEUVERING THE AIRPLANE TO THE LEFT TO REVERSE DIRECTION, IT COLLIDED WITH TERRAIN. WITNESSES REPORTED THE PLANE'S ENGINE SOUNDED NORMAL AND THAT THE WEATHER WAS GOOD WITH CLEAR SKIES, UNLIMITED VISIBILITY AND LIGHT WIND. A PILOT WHO FLEW OVER THE ACCIDENT SITE MINUTES AFTER THE MISHAP REPORTED THE AREA WAS DEVOID OF TURBULENCE. THIS WAS A PART 135, ON-DEMAND, LODGE/HUNTING GUIDE OPERATION.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,200 hours in all; 3,500 in this make and model; 175 in the last 90 days; 131 in the last 30 days; 4,900 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,775 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 16, 1994; 29 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,090 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-985-14B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Talnon Air Service
The flight
- Departed from: Caribou Lake AK at 7:30 pm
- Destination: Nikiski AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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 N17394 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.