Piper PA-32-260 accident near Kenai, Alaska, August 14, 1994
On August 14, 1994 at about 5:27 pm local time, a Piper PA-32-260, registered N4839S, was destroyed in an accident near Kenai, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 3 people were killed and 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
INADEQUATE ENGINE MAINTENANCE AND/OR INSPECTION, AND FATIGUE CRACKING OF THE ENGINE CASE, WHICH RESULTED IN EVENTUAL DAMAGE TO THE #3 CYLINDER STUDS/ENGINE THROUGH-BOLTS, SUBSEQUENT SEPARATION OF THE #3 CYLINDER AND PISTON, AND AN IN-FLIGHT FIRE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 14, 1994 · about 5:27 pm local time
- Place
- Kenai, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-260 · all PA-32-260s on the register
- Registration
- N4839S · no longer on the register · serial 32-1268
- 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 AIRPLANE WAS ON A PART 135 ON-DEMAND AIR TAXI FLIGHT, WHEN PHYSICAL SEPARATION OF THE NO. 3 CYLINDER AND PISTON OCCURRED AND AN IN-FLIGHT FIRE ENSUED. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE AIRPLANE CRASH LANDED ON TERRAIN NEAR THE SHORELINE OF A BODY OF WATER. ONE OF THE FOUR OCCUPANTS SURVIVED THE CRASH, BUT THE SURVIVING PASSENGER COULD NOT RECALL EVENTS THAT LED TO THE ACCIDENT. MAINTENANCE RECORDS INDICATED THAT THE #3 AND #4 CYLINDER ASSEMBLIES WERE INSTALLED ABOUT 220 FLIGHT HOURS BEFORE THE ACCIDENT. THIS MAINTENANCE WAS PERFORMED WITHOUT REMOVING THE ENGINE FROM THE AIRPLANE. NO PROBLEM WITH THE AIRFRAME OR ENGINE WAS RECORDED SUBSEQUENT TO THE CYLINDER CHANGE. INSPECTION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED FATIGUE CRACKS IN THE CASE UNDER THE NO. 3 CYLINDER. MAGNIFIED INSPECTION OF THE CASE REVEALED WEAR AND DEFORMATION DAMAGE, WHERE THE HOLDING FLANGE AND INNER SKIRT OF THE CYLINDER WOULD NORMALLY BE POSITIONED, WHICH WAS CONSISTENT WITH THE CYLINDER MOVING IN RELATION TO THE CASE. ALSO, MECHANICAL DAMAGE WAS EVIDENT ON THE THREADS OF THE STUDS AND BOTH THROUGH-BOLTS.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,500 hours in all; 500 in this make and model; 300 in the last 90 days; 100 in the last 30 days; 12,500 as pilot in command; 6,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,702 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 6, 1994; 23 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-E4B5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MRI Merrill Field AK at 11:08 am
- Destination: Port Alsworth AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 70 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:46 pm from ENA, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 | 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.
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.