Cessna 207A accident near Scammon Bay, Alaska, April 22, 1998
On April 22, 1998 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Cessna 207A, registered N7438U, was substantially damaged in an accident near Scammon Bay, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people had minor injuries; 5 others were unhurt. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's continued VFR flight into instrument meteorological conditions. Factors in the accident were low ceilings, and whiteout conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 22, 1998 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Scammon Bay, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries; 5 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 207A · all 207As on the register
- Registration
- N7438U · no longer on the register · serial 20700464
- 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 VFR cross-country air taxi flight with six passengers departed for a remote village. The pilot had previously flown along the accident route that transited a mountainous area. Low clouds were present over the mountains, and the pilot utilized a mountain pass to transit the area about 200 feet above the ground. He decided that route was not suitable for the accident flight with any passengers. During the accident flight, the pilot proceed east of the previously utilized mountain pass. The flight however, still necessitated transiting an area of low hills. As the flight was approaching the destination, snow covered terrain was rising toward low clouds over the mountains. The pilot observed what he thought was the approach end of the destination airport, and began a descent. The apparent runway was actually a creek bottom. The pilot began a turn, and observed rising terrain. He stopped the turn and applied full power. The airplane collided with rising terrain in a whiteout condition, about 900 feet msl. A passenger in the airplane reported that about 10 minutes after departure, the airplane entered an area of fog at an altitude of 3,000 feet msl. His view of the ground disappeared, and the area around the airplane was completely white. About 5 minutes after entering the fog, the airplane collided with snow covered terrain.
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 18,000 hours in all; 800 in this make and model; 156 in the last 90 days; 49 in the last 30 days; 7,000 as pilot in command; 4,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,317 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, April 19, 1998; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,800 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-F (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Hageland Aviation Services INC
The flight
- Departed from: HPB Hooper Bay AK at 2:07 pm
- Destination: SCM Scammon Bay AK
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 14 knots
- Visibility: 4 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 1,900 ft
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:23 pm from HPB, 25 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 | 4 |
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.