Cessna 205 accident near Anchorage, Alaska, May 4, 1995
On May 4, 1995 at about 5:15 am local time, a Cessna 205, registered N8312Z, was destroyed in an accident near Anchorage, Alaska. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A FAILURE OF THE ENGINE DRIVEN FUEL PUMP. FACTORS IN THE ACCIDENT WERE THE PILOTS' INADEQUATE IN-FLIGHT PLANNING AND UNSUITABLE TERRAIN IN THE AREA OF THE FORCED LANDING.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 4, 1995 · about 5:15 am local time
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 205
- Registration
- N8312Z · no longer on the register · serial 2050312
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A CERTIFICATED COMMERCIAL/CFI PILOT WAS RECEIVING AN AIRPLANE CHECKOUT FROM THE OWNER/PILOT PRIOR TO RENTING THE AIRPLANE. THE OWNER REDUCED THE ENGINE POWER TO IDLE TO SIMULATE AN ENGINE FAILURE AND FORCED LANDING. THE AREA CONSISTED OF OPEN AREAS OF SOFT TUNDRA MUSKEG AND TALL SPRUCE TREES. THE PILOT MANEUVERED THE AIRPLANE TOWARD A PROSPECTIVE LANDING AREA AND DESCENDED TO ABOUT 300 TO 500 FEET AGL. THE PILOT INITIATED A GO-AROUND AND ADVANCED THE THROTTLE TO BEGIN A CLIMB, BUT THE ENGINE DID NOT RESPOND. EMERGENCY PROCEDURES BY BOTH PILOTS DID NOT RESTORE ENGINE POWER. THE AIRPLANE CONTINUED TO DESCEND AND COLLIDED WITH TREES. A POSTACCIDENT EXAMINATION OF ENGINE REVEALED THAT THE ENGINE DRIVEN FUEL PUMP HAD FAILED.
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 1,900 hours in all; 50 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 1,730 as pilot in command; 935 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,220 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 28, 1994; 74 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,000 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-470-S (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MRI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 060° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 90 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 5,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.