Cessna A185F accident near 11Nm East Of Si, Alaska, July 24, 1982
On July 24, 1982 at about 11:00 pm local time, a Cessna A185F, registered N9682Q, was destroyed in an accident near 11Nm East Of Si, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 4 people were killed. 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 24, 1982 · about 11:00 pm local time
- Place
- 11Nm East Of Si, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna A185F · all A185Fs on the register
- Registration
- N9682Q · no longer on the register · serial 18503786
- 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
AFTER DEPARTING SITKA THE ACFT PROCEEDED GENERALLY EAST VIA BLUE LAKE, BLUE LAKE PASS & THE "CUT", A RIDGE ORIENTED NE/SW WITH AN ELEVATION OF APPROXIMATELY 3000 FT MSL. THE IMPACT SITE WAS ABOUT 1 NM SE OF THE CUT ON THE NORTH FACE OF THE VALLEY. BOTH STALL FENCES, LOCATED ON THE UPPER SURFACE OF EACH WING WERE FOUND IMBEDDED IN THE GROUND. THEIR POSITION CORRESPONDED ROUGHLY TO WHERE THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN LOCATED HAD THE ACFT FALLEN TO THE GROUND VERTICALLY & IN A RELATIVELY FLAT ATTITUDE. SEVERAL PLTS OPERATING IN THE VICINITY OF THE ACCIDENT SITE & BLUE LAKE PASS WITHIN SEVERAL HOURS AFTER THE ACCIDENT REPORTED TURBULENCE & STRONG NORTHWESTERLY WINDS. THERE WERE ALSO SEVERAL REPORTS OF CLOUD SPILLOVER TO THE LEE SIDE OF THE CUT INDICITIVE OF DOWNDRAFTS.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,908 hours in all; 108 in the last 90 days; 50 in the last 30 days; 2,800 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 884 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 29 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,350 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SIT Sitka AK at 3:33 pm
- Destination: BNF Warm Springs Ba AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 13 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,300 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 138°F (59°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 pm from SIT, 11 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.