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Accidents · NTSB SEA86LA017 · Preliminary: the investigation is not finished

Cessna 172 accident near North Bend, Oregon, October 29, 1985

On October 29, 1985 at about 2:54 am local time, a Cessna 172, registered N8316B, was involved in an accident near North Bend, Oregon (North Bend airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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
October 29, 1985 · about 2:54 am local time · cases in 1985
Place
North Bend, Oregon · North Bend · 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
Cessna 172 · all 172s on the register
Registration
N8316B · registry record · serial 17236116
Damage
Not recorded
Flight
Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

THE PLT REPORTED HAVING DIFFICULTY FINDING THE TIE DOWN RAMP AREA AT THE UNFAMILIAR ARPT IN DUSK LIGHT CONDITIONS. THE PASSENGER EXITED THE ACFT WITH A FLASHLIGHT TO LOCATE A TIE DOWN SPOT AND WALKED INTO THE SPINNING PROP. THE PLT STATED THE PASSENGER WAS FAMILIAR WITH SMALL ACFT.

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: private
  • Ratings: single-engine land
  • Flight time: 130 hours in all; 130 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 101 as pilot in command
  • Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
  • Seat: left

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 3,698 hours
  • Last inspection: annual inspection, July 15, 1985; 112 hours since
  • Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
  • Seats: 4
  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Engine: Continental O-300-A (piston); 0 hours total

The flight

  • Departed from: AST Astoria OR at 9:15 pm
  • Destination: OTH North Bend OR
  • Flight plan: VFR
  • Runway 0

Weather at the time

  • Light: dusk
  • Wind: from 020° at 8 knots, gusting 1
  • Visibility: 7 statute miles
  • Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 10,000 ft
  • Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
  • Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
  • Observation at 3:11 am from OTH, 1 miles away

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew1

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

Aircraft
Place
Analytics

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/SEA86LA017.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.