Amateur-built DHC-2 accident near Ketchikan, Alaska, December 12, 1996
On December 12, 1996 at about 1:05 pm local time, a amateur-built DHC-2, registered N67694, was destroyed in an accident near Ketchikan, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was killed and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's inadequate compensation for wind conditions, and failure to maintain adequate airspeed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall and collision with terrain (water). A factor associated with the accident was the gusty wind condition.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 12, 1996 · about 1:05 pm local time
- Place
- Ketchikan, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built DHC-2
- Registration
- N67694 · no longer on the register · serial 924
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the passenger, he and the pilot had just taken off, and as they were climbing out over an open water portion of a bay, the pilot said, 'here comes a gust.' Reportedly, the pilot added engine power, and the airplane began descending. The right wing started to dip, and the nose started to drop. The pilot had the control yoke turned all the way to the left, then yelled that they were going in. The airplane crashed in the water, and the passenger exited the airplane through the windshield. He did not see the pilot. The deceased pilot was found still strapped in his seat several days later, when a portion of the wreckage was recovered.
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: 17,800 hours in all; 8,500 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 51 in the last 30 days; 17,700 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 20,640 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 29, 1996; 87 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,370 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-985-AN-14B (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Taquan Air Service
The flight
- Departed from: Port Johnson AK at 1:00 pm
- Destination: KTN AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 25 knots, gusting 35
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.