Cessna 185F accident near Skwentna, Alaska, March 4, 1996
On March 4, 1996 at about 9:00 pm local time, a Cessna 185F, registered N5246E, was substantially damaged in an accident near Skwentna, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's selection of an unsuitable area for landing. A factor associated with the accident was the rough and uneven terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 4, 1996 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Skwentna, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 185F · all 185Fs on the register
- Registration
- N5246E · no longer on the register · serial 18503943
- 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 landed the ski-equipped airplane on a rough and uneven frozen lake, and the left main landing gear collapsed. Inspection showed that the gear failure was consistent with overload forces.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,010 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 50 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 3,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,438 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 30, 1995; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SKW AK at 8:30 pm
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 100 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 19°F (-7°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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 N5246E 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.