Cessna 170A accident near North Pole, Alaska, August 24, 1998
On August 24, 1998, a Cessna 170A, registered N9754A, was substantially damaged in an accident near North Pole, Alaska (Bradley Sky Ranch airport). It was an instructional 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 student pilot's inadvertent ground loop/swerve during the landing roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 24, 1998 · cases in 1998
- Place
- North Pole, Alaska · Bradley Sky Ranch · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 170A · all 170As on the register
- Registration
- N9754A · registry record · serial 19215
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot reported he was on a solo flight to a local gravel-covered airstrip. During the landing roll, he lost control of the tail wheel equipped airplane, and it ground looped/swerved to the left side of the runway. The right main landing gear collapsed, and the right wing struck the ground. The student pilot noted in his report to the NTSB that there were no preaccident mechanical problems with the airplane.
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: student
- Flight time: 28 hours in all; 22 in this make and model; 5 as pilot in command; 24 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,660 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 1, 1998; 42 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-145-2 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FAI Fairbanks AK
- Destination: 95Z
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 15, 4,100 ft by 80 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 134° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from PAF, 16 miles away
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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N9754A on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 170 2,085 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,677 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Continental C-145-2 11 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Fairbanks International · departed from
- Bradley Sky-Ranch Airport · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in Alaska 5,932 since 1982 · 823 in the last ten years
- Alaska 9,144 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC98LA136.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.