The U.S. aircraft register, updated daily
Accidents · NTSB ANC94LA043 · Final report

Piper PA-18 accident near Soldotna, Alaska, March 12, 1994

On March 12, 1994 at about 9:45 pm local time, a Piper PA-18, registered N3485Z, was substantially damaged in an accident near Soldotna, Alaska (Soldotna airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).

The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged

THE FAILURE OF THE PILOT-IN-COMMAND/FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE AIRPLANE.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
March 12, 1994 · about 9:45 pm local time · cases in 1994
Place
Soldotna, Alaska · Soldotna · cases near this airport · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Piper PA-18 · all PA-18s on the register
Registration
N3485Z · registry record · serial 18-7317
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

THE FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR WAS DEMONSTRATING WHEEL LANDINGS TO A NON-RATED STUDENT PILOT. SHORTLY AFTER TOUCHDOWN, THE PLANE BEGAN TO SWERVED TOWARD THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. APPLICATION OF LEFT RUDDER PEDAL DID NOT ARREST THE SWERVE AS THE INSTRUCTOR APPLIED WHEEL BRAKING AND THE PLANE NOSED OVER.

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: 4,900 hours in all; 400 in this make and model; 80 in the last 90 days; 37 in the last 30 days; 4,400 as pilot in command; 1,600 on instruments
  • Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
  • Seat: rear

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 2,488 hours
  • Last inspection: annual inspection, August 2, 1993; 95 hours since
  • Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
  • Seats: 2
  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total

The flight

  • Departed from: Z41 Anchorage AK at 8:15 pm
  • Flight plan: none
  • Runway 7, 4,973 ft by 130 ft
  • A second pilot was aboard

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Visibility: 30 statute miles
  • Sky: clear
  • Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew2

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.

Connections how this case links to the rest of the register

Aircraft
Place
Analytics

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC94LA043.json.

The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.

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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.