Swearingen SA-26 accident near Galena, Alaska, June 5, 1996
On June 5, 1996 at about 9:30 pm local time, a Swearingen SA-26, registered N501FS, was substantially damaged in an accident near Galena, Alaska (Illinois Creek airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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 landing site. Factors associated with the accident were the soft and uneven airstrip conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 5, 1996 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Galena, Alaska · Illinois Creek · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Swearingen SA-26 · all SA-26s on the register
- Registration
- N501FS · no longer on the register · serial T-26-146
- 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 was landing the two engine turboprop airplane on a rural airstrip that was created to support a mining operation. During rollout on the rough dirt strip, the airplane encountered a soft spot and veered to the left. The nose landing gear collapsed, and the propellers struck the ground. A postcrash fire started in the vicinity of the left engine and was subsequently extinguished by ground personnel.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,000 hours in all; 300 in this make and model; 21 in the last 90 days; 21 in the last 30 days; 5,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,720 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, May 23, 1996; 13 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE331-1-151G (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: ANC Anchorage AK at 3:00 pm
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 17, 4,480 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
Other NTSB records under N501FS 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.