Piper PA-32-300 accident near 51 Nm Ese Yakut, Alaska, July 8, 1982
On July 8, 1982 at about 11:30 am local time, a Piper PA-32-300, registered N1119X, was destroyed in an accident near 51 Nm Ese Yakut, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people had minor injuries. 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
- July 8, 1982 · about 11:30 am local time
- Place
- 51 Nm Ese Yakut, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-300 · all PA-32-300s on the register
- Registration
- N1119X · no longer on the register · serial 327540145
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT REPORTED THAT DURING DEPARTURE, HE PROCEEDED EAST ALONG THE ALSEK RIVER AND ALONG THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE ALSEK GLACIER WHILE CLIMBING TO 6200 FT. HE THEN DECIDED THAT THE INTENDED ROUTE WAS CLOSED DUE TO LOW CLOUDS AND HE INITIATED A TURN TO REVERSE COURSE. REPORTLY, A LEFT TURN WAS COMMENCED AND "ONE NOTCH OF FLAPS SET." THE PILOT STATED THAT SHORTLY AFTER THAT, THE ENGINE BEGAN TO LOSE POWER. HE REPORTED THAT THE MIXTURE, PROPS AND THROTTLE WERE ADVANCED, BUT THERE WAS NO INCREASE IN POWER. HE SWITCHED THE FUEL SELECTOR FROM THE RIGHT TO THE LEFT MAIN TANK AND TURNED ON THE BOOST PUMP. HE STATED THE PLANE CONTINUED TO LOSE ALTITUDE AND CONTINUATION OF THE TURN WAS IMPOSSIBLE DUE TO TERRAIN. HE DECIDED TO TRY AND CROSS OVER THE GLACIER AND LAND ON A SOLID STRETCH OF ICE, BUT THERE WAS INSUFFICIENT ALTITUDE AND THE PLANE CRASHED. A SUBSEQUENT EXAMINATION AND TEST RUN OF THE ENGINE REVEALED NO DISCREPANCIES.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,850 hours in all; 400 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,192 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 27 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: C Dry Bay AK at 1:10 am
- Destination: C Haines AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 95°F (35°C), dew point 0°F (-18°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.
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.