Cessna 206 accident near Yakutat, Alaska, August 31, 1996
On August 31, 1996 at about 8:20 pm local time, a Cessna 206, registered N7345N, was substantially damaged in an accident near Yakutat, Alaska. It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's landing on the water with the landing gear inadvertently extended.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 31, 1996 · about 8:20 pm local time
- Place
- Yakutat, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 206 · all 206s on the register
- Registration
- N7345N · no longer on the register · serial 20603623
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot had departed for a remote fiord in the amphibious float equipped airplane to pick up several passengers. The flight was reported overdue and search personnel located the airplane floating upside down in the area of the destination. The landing gear was extended. The front windshield was broken out and the pilot's seat belt was unbuckled. The pilot was not found and is presumed to have received fatal injuries. The pilot was the only pilot for the operator, and was the director of operations and the chief pilot.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,500 hours in all; 60 in this make and model; 8,500 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,329 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 23, 1996; 6 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: YAK AK at 3:00 pm
- Destination: Russell Fiord AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 143° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 3,300 ft; scat at 1,700 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:30 pm from YAK, 11 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.