Piper PA-32 accident near Port Lions, Alaska, December 12, 1993
On December 12, 1993 at about 3:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-32, registered N43527, was substantially damaged in an accident near Port Lions, Alaska (Port Lions airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
IMPROPER INFLIGHT PLANNING AND DECISION-MAKING BY THE PILOT IN COMMAND. FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WERE THE ICY RUNWAY CONDITION AND THE TAILWIND.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 12, 1993 · about 3:00 pm local time
- Place
- Port Lions, Alaska · Port Lions · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32 · all PA-32s on the register
- Registration
- N43527 · registry record · serial 32-7440131
- 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 ATTEMPTED A DOWNWIND LANDING ON ICY, WET RUNWAY. NO LOCAL OBSERVER WAS AVAILABLE TO ASSESS THE RUNWAY CONDITION. THE WIND SOCK AND WHITECAPS ON NEARBY WATER WERE AVAILABLE TO THE PILOT TO DETERMINE WIND ON APPROACH.
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; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,500 hours in all; 1,800 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 80 in the last 30 days; 3,400 as pilot in command; 400 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,955 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 3, 1993; 57 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1G5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ADQ Kodiak AK at 2:45 pm
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 24, 2,100 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 045° at 10 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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 N43527 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.