Piper PA-32R-300 accident near Gustavus, Alaska, November 26, 1982
On November 26, 1982 at about 6:20 pm local time, a Piper PA-32R-300, registered N6104J, was substantially damaged in an accident near Gustavus, Alaska (Gustavus airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 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 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 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 26, 1982 · about 6:20 pm local time · cases in 1982
- Place
- Gustavus, Alaska · Gustavus · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32R-300 · all PA-32R-300s on the register
- Registration
- N6104J · no longer on the register · serial 32R7680303
- 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 PILOT REPORTED THAT SLUSH ACCUMULATION ON THE RUNWAY PREVENTED THE AIRCRAFT FROM REACHING TAKEOFF SPEED. HE ABORTED THE TAKEOFF AND WITH BRAKING ACTION "NIL" SLID OFF THE END OF THE RUNWAY. GUSTAVUS AIRPORT IS OWNED AND OPERATED BY THE STATE OF ALASKA AND HAS NO WINTER MAINTENANCE.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,693 hours in all; 124 in this make and model; 26 in the last 90 days; 1,525 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,314 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1G5D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: GST Gustavus AK
- Destination: C Juneau Jnu AK
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 1, 5,400 ft by 340 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 30 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 |
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
- N6104J: not on the register today · the record of its deregistration
- Piper PA-32 Cherokee Six, Lance and Saratoga 3,916 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Piper 44,848 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1G5D 52 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Gustavus Airport · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Alaska 5,930 since 1982 · 824 in the last ten years
- Alaska 9,146 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/SEA83LA025.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.