Piper PA-31-T3 accident near Tyonek, Alaska, November 11, 1997
On November 11, 1997 at about 10:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-31-T3, registered N314SC, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tyonek, Alaska (Beluga airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
An on-ground collision with an animal (moose). Factors in the accident were night VFR conditions that restricted the pilot's visual lookout, and the lack of an airport perimeter fence.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 11, 1997 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Tyonek, Alaska · Beluga · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-31-T3 · all PA-31-T3s on the register
- Registration
- N314SC · no longer on the register · serial 31T-8275007
- 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
A twin engine airplane was departing a private airstrip on a non scheduled air taxi flight during night VFR conditions. The airplane had accelerated to between 85 and 90 knots on the runway. The captain noticed a shadow ahead and left of the airplane, and then felt an impact with the airplane. He aborted the takeoff, and stopped the airplane on the runway. He taxied clear of the runway, and noticed a moose had been struck by the left wing of the airplane during the departure roll. The airplane received damage to the left wing tip, and the left wing spar. The airport is served by several air taxi operators, and is surrounded by brush and trees. A road parallels the east side of the runway, and a line of trees begins about 100 feet east of the road. The airport property is not fenced.
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: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 13,701 hours in all; 6,141 in this make and model; 35 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days; 13,453 as pilot in command; 267 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,651 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 3, 1997; 17 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 9,050 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PT6-11 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BLG
- Destination: ENA Kenai AK
- Runway 18, 5,000 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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 N314SC 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.