Cessna 185E accident near Anchorage, Alaska, March 24, 1998
On March 24, 1998 at about 2:45 pm local time, a Cessna 185E, registered N1987U, was substantially damaged in an accident near Anchorage, Alaska (Merrill Field). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 compensation for crosswind conditions during landing. A factor was the crosswind.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 24, 1998 · about 2:45 pm local time
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · Merrill Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 185E · all 185Es on the register
- Registration
- N1987U · no longer on the register · serial 18501745
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was practicing touch-and-go landings on runway 6 in a tailwheel-equipped airplane on the paved runway. Wind conditions at the time of the accident were 016 at 7 knots. The pilot stated that the airplane bounced slightly and settled onto the right main tire. The right main wheel 'grabbed' as it made contact with the runway, and the airplane ground looped to the left. During the ground loop, the right wing, aileron, and right elevator struck the runway and sustained substantial damage.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,118 hours in all; 23 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 1,069 as pilot in command; 807 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,040 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 13, 1998; 9 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 6, 3,999 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 016° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:40 pm from MRI
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.
Other NTSB records under N1987U 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.