Britten-Norman BN-2A accident near Sitka, Alaska, September 5, 1988
On September 5, 1988 at about 9:45 pm local time, a Britten-Norman BN-2A, registered N111VA, was destroyed in an accident near Sitka, Alaska. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was killed, 5 people were seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries; 2 others were unhurt. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- September 5, 1988 · about 9:45 pm local time
- Place
- Sitka, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed, 5 people were seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries; 2 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Britten-Norman BN-2A · all BN-2As on the register
- Registration
- N111VA · registry record · serial 215
- 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 ENCOUNTERED LOW CEILINGS, RAIN AND FOG WHILE ATTEMPTING TO FLY THROUGH A NARROW MOUNTAIN PASS AND SUCCESSFULLY REVERSED COURSE. HE THEN FLEW INTO A SMALL CANYON OFF THE MAIN PASS THAT TERMINATED IN A SMALL GLACIER-COVERED BOWL SURROUNDED BY STEEP ROCK WALLS. WHEN IT BECAME APPARENT DURING A TURN TO REVERSE COURSE THAT THERE WAS INSUFFICIENT SPACE TO COMPLETE THE MANEUVER BEFORE COLLISION WITH A ROCK WALL, THE PILOT RETARDED THE THROTTLES AND CRASH LANDED ON A GLACIER.
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: 4,000 hours in all; 191 in this make and model; 112 in the last 90 days; 52 in the last 30 days; 3,808 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 15, 1988
- Maximum gross weight: 6,200 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-E4C5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: PSG Petersburg AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,800 ft; scat at 1,400 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:50 pm from SIT, 9 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
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 N111VA 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.