Cessna 207A accident near Minto, Alaska, April 23, 1997
On April 23, 1997 at about 7:45 pm local time, a Cessna 207A, registered N1785U, was substantially damaged in an accident near Minto, Alaska. 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 inadequate preflight inspection of the airplane, which resulted in an unlatched door opening in-flight.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 23, 1997 · about 7:45 pm local time
- Place
- Minto, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 207A · all 207As on the register
- Registration
- N1785U · no longer on the register · serial 20700385
- 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 scheduled commuter flight was at cruise altitude when the cargo door opened in flight and struck the side of the fuselage. The airplane landed without mishap. Postaccident inspection disclosed substantial damage to the fuselage in the area where the door impacted. The pilot believed he had latched the door prior to takeoff. Inspection of the door and latching mechanism disclosed no mechanical anomalies.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,831 hours in all; 56 in this make and model; 1,750 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 11,458 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SVS Stevens Village AK at 2:19 pm
- Destination: FAI Fairbanks AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 60 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.