Cessna 207 incident near Anchorage, Alaska, March 28, 1994
On March 28, 1994 at about 10:20 pm local time, a Cessna 207, registered N29CF, suffered minor damage in an incident near Anchorage, Alaska (Sleeper Strip airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person had minor injuries; 3 others were unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PARTIAL FAILURE OF THE NO. 4 PISTON FROM OVER TEMPERATURE (DETONATION).
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 28, 1994 · about 10:20 pm local time
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · Sleeper Strip · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 3 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 207 · all 207s on the register
- Registration
- N29CF · registry record
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE IN CRUISE FLIGHT ENGINE SUDDENLY BEGAN TO RUN ROUGH AND LOOSE POWER. NO UNUSUAL NOISE WAS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ANOMALY. EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED DAMAGE TO THE UPPER SURFACE OF THE NO. 4 PISTON. THE DAMAGE TO THE PISTON WAS CONSISTENT WITH DETONATION AND SUBSEQUENT RING BREAKAGE.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,700 hours in all; 7,200 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 65 in the last 30 days; 9,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 13,480 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 17, 1994; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Spernak Airways, INC.
The flight
- Destination: BLG Beluga AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 43°F (6°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 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 N29CF 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.