Piper PA-18-180 accident near Tok, Alaska, June 27, 1997
On June 27, 1997 at about 3:30 pm local time, a Piper PA-18-180, registered N3685Z, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tok, Alaska. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The second pilot/dual student's failure to maintain a proper glidepath, and the pilot-in-command/flight instructor's inadequate supervision. A factor associated with the accident was a downdraft.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 27, 1997 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Tok, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-18-180 · all PA-18-180s on the register
- Registration
- N3685Z · registry record · serial 18-7417
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The second pilot was a rated float plane pilot, but did not meet the criteria to act as pilot-in-command (PIC) by his employer, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). The PIC, who was also employed by the USFWS, was a certifcated flight instructor, and was giving additional instruction to the second pilot to meet the USFWS standards for PIC. The second pilot was flying at the time of the accident. The two pilots had been practicing touch-and-go landings on a lake. During the approach to land, the airplane's floats inadvertently touched on a flat, grassy area short of the water. Engine power was applied, and the airplane continued to the lake to make an uneventful landing. Postflight inspection disclosed a damaged fuselage near the left float's rear attachment point. The PIC believes the airplane may have encountered a downdraft just prior to touching down on the grassy area.
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, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 10,000 hours in all; 3,000 in this make and model; 32 in the last 90 days; 23 in the last 30 days; 9,500 as pilot in command; 2,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,000 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, June 15, 1997; 31 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming L-O-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 10 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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 N3685Z 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.