Piper PA-18 accident near Gakona, Alaska, July 16, 1997
On July 16, 1997 at about 9:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-18, registered N83675, was substantially damaged in an accident near Gakona, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's selection of unsuitable terrain for landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 16, 1997 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Gakona, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-18 · all PA-18s on the register
- Registration
- N83675 · registry record · serial 18-7709116
- 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 a tailwheel and tundra tire equipped airplane on a rocky mountain ridge at 5,400 feet mean sea level. The landing area was about 600 feet long and 50 feet wide. The pilot was landing in a westerly direction and during touchdown the right main landing gear tire struck a rock. The right main landing gear collapsed, and the airplane nosed over. The pilot described the wind conditions as light and variable.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 25,000 hours in all; 24,500 in this make and model; 350 in the last 90 days; 100 in the last 30 days; 25,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,980 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 20, 1997; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: AK at 3:30 pm
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 6,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 50°F (10°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.