Stinson 10A accident near Nondalton, Alaska, December 4, 1998
On December 4, 1998 at about 6:55 pm local time, a Stinson 10A, registered N36755, was substantially damaged in an accident near Nondalton, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 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 pilot's continued operation of the airplane with known deficiencies, a failure of company maintenance personnel to replace an inoperative fuel gauge, and subsequent fuel exhaustion. Factors in the accident were siphoning of fuel from the right wing fuel cap, and slush covered terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 4, 1998 · about 6:55 pm local time · cases in 1998
- Place
- Nondalton, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Stinson 10A · all 10As on the register
- Registration
- N36755 · registry record · serial 8168
- 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
The certificated commercial pilot, and the sole passenger, departed for an on-demand air taxi flight over remote terrain. The passenger was conducting moose counting research for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The airplane carried four hours of fuel divided between two wing mounted fuel tanks. Each fuel tank is equipped with an electric fuel gauge. After flying for two hours with the left fuel tank selected, the fuel in the left tank was almost exhausted, and the pilot switched to the right fuel tank. He then flew for about 1.5 hours on the right tank before the engine suddenly quit. The pilot switched back to the left tank and climbed to about 1,000 feet above the ground. After about 6 minutes on the left tank, the engine quit running again. The pilot selected an emergency landing area on a small, frozen pond. The surface of the pond contained slushy ice and drifted snow. During the landing roll, the airplane entered deep snow and nosed over. The passenger reported she flew in the accident airplane two days before the accident. During that flight, she noticed the right fuel gauge in the airplane was inoperative. During the accident flight, two days later, she again noticed the right fuel gauge was still inoperative. Following recovery of the airplane, evidence of fuel staining was observed on the upper surface of the right wing, adjacent to the right fuel cap.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,724 hours in all; 26 in this make and model; 348 in the last 90 days; 68 in the last 30 days; 5,621 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,359 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 14, 1998; 15 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,823 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Lake Clark Air INC.
The flight
- Departed from: Port Alsworth AK at 3:39 pm
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 325° at 2 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 21°F (-6°C), dew point 18°F (-8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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
- N36755 on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Stinson 10 89 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Stinson 1,730 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B 179 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Accidents and incidents in Alaska 5,932 since 1982 · 826 in the last ten years
- Alaska 9,144 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC99LA015.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.