Piper PA-32-300 accident near Glacier Bay, Alaska, June 29, 1982
On June 29, 1982 at about 8:25 pm local time, a Piper PA-32-300, registered N2947N, was substantially damaged in an accident near Glacier Bay, Alaska. 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
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 29, 1982 · about 8:25 pm local time
- Place
- Glacier Bay, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-300 · all PA-32-300s on the register
- Registration
- N2947N · no longer on the register · serial 327940225
- 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 AIRCRAFT ENGINE STOPPED DURING NORMAL CRUISE AND AN EMERGENCY LANDING WAS MADE IN A DRY RIVER BED. THE LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED FROM OVERLOAD DURING THE LANDING. EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED A CONNECTING DOWEL FOR A DRIVE GEAR DRIVEN BY THE CRANKSHAFT HAD BECOME LOOSE.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,725 hours in all; 555 in this make and model; 220 in the last 90 days; 1,600 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,591 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 91 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K-165 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: GST Gustavus AK at 1:05 pm
- Destination: HNS Haines AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 350° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 136°F (58°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:43 pm from GST, 80 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
Other NTSB records under N2947N 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.