Cessna A-185-F accident near Juneau, Alaska, May 20, 1996
On May 20, 1996 at about 8:50 pm local time, a Cessna A-185-F, registered N56581, was substantially damaged in an accident near Juneau, Alaska (Juneau airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 inadequate compensation for the wind conditions. A factor associated with the accident was the crosswind.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 20, 1996 · about 8:50 pm local time
- Place
- Juneau, Alaska · Juneau · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A-185-F · all A-185-Fs on the register
- Registration
- N56581 · registry record · serial 18502907
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was landing a tailwheel airplane modified with over size 'Tundra' tires on a hard surfaced runway. He observed a crosswind from the right during the landing flare, and attempted to correct for the airplane's drift by placing the upwind (right) tire on the runway first. The airplane touched down on the right main tire first, and the pilot said he felt some drift, and then the airplane veering to the left. The right wing subsequently scraped the runway before the pilot was able to bring the airplane to a stop. Damage was observed to the right wing, and the right main tire was flat. Postaccident inspection of the right wheel assembly disclosed no evidence of preaccident mechanical anomaly. The pilot wrote in his statement that the accident could have been prevented by the use of better crosswind techniques.
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: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,461 hours in all; 245 in this make and model; 51 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 1,436 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,977 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 3, 1996; 79 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: GST Gustavus AK at 3:10 pm
- Destination: JNU
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 8, 8,456 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 110° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,000 ft; scat at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:50 pm from JNU
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 N56581 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.