# NTSB ANC26FA091: Piper PA-24-260, N9485P, Seldovia, AK, August 26, 2026

- Type: NTSB accident investigation
- Classification: Accident · Fatal · Class 3 · Field · Preliminary report
- Date: August 26, 2026, 13:17 local (21:17 UTC)
- Place: Seldovia, AK · Lagon
- Coordinates: 59.434666, -151.71121
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=59.4347&lon=-151.7112&mi=10
- Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping)
- Defining event: [Landing-aborted after touchdown: Collision during takeoff/land](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/490)
- Highest injury: Fatal
- Injuries: 4 fatal
- Status: Investigation ongoing
- Investigation class: Class 3
- NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office
- Parties: FAA, Piper Aircraft, Inc.
- NTSB case key (mKey): 203672
- NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC26FA091
- NTSB preliminary report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/203672/pdf
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC26FA091

## Preliminary report

On August 26, 2026 about 1317 Alaska daylight time, a Piper PA-24-260 airplane, N9485P, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Seldovia, Alaska. The pilot and three passengers were fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot and three passengers departed from Merrill Field Airport (PAMR), Anchorage, Alaska, for a day flight to Seldovia Airport (PASO), Seldovia, Alaska. A witness at the Seldovia airport heard the airplane approaching to land on runway 16 and the airplane appeared to be coming in fast. He then heard a series of bounces which sounded hard and abnormal. The first bounce was loud and not a normal touchdown sound. He heard a second bounce which also sounded hard and abnormal. He visually saw the third bounce and believed that the nosewheel hit the ground first. He then heard the engine go to full throttle. He stated that the aircraft pitched up very high and possibly had a tail strike. A witness working with heavy equipment near the end of the runway saw the airplane and noted the airplane was unusually low to the ground just past the end of the runway. He further noted that the accident airplane had attempted to land in the opposite direction of other airplanes that had been landing. Multiple ground witnesses reported seeing the airplane unusually low to the ground, the engine being very loud, and the airplane impacting a tree before descending into the water. The FAA’s chart supplement for the airport notes that surface of the Seldovia Airport runway is gravel and the length is 1,845 ft. The slope to clear obstructions for runway 16 is 11:1. The supplement notes 158 ft trees, 1,735 ft from runway 16 and 110 ft left of the centerline. For runway 34, the supplement notes an 89 ft tree, 995 ft from the runway, and 140 ft right of the centerline. The Automated Surface Observing System (ASOS) weather station at the airport at the time of the accident was reporting wind from 020 at 5 knots with wind gusts at 9 knots. The airplane came to rest about 2,200 ft from the end of runway 16 into the Seldovia Slough. A detailed wreckage examination is pending.

## Sequence of events

The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened.

- [Landing-aborted after touchdown: Collision during takeoff/land](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/490) (defining event); cases with it: [Piper PA-24-260, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/490/sequence.md?model=7102406), [All aircraft, 1,309 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/490/sequence.md)
- [Landing-aborted after touchdown: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT) ](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470); cases with it: [Piper PA-24-260, 24 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md?model=7102406), [All aircraft, 10,189 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md)

## Aircraft

- Registration: [N9485P](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N9485P), registered now, S/N 24-4999, built 1971 (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-24-260
- Registry model: [Piper PA-24-260](https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-24-260) (registry code 7102406) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: [Lycoming TI0-540 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-ti0-540-series) (registry code 41533, turbo-prop) (OpenAirDocs)
- Category: Airplane
- Serial number: 24-4999
- Year built: 1971
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Flight: Personal, Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal
- Departed: PAMR, Anchorage, AK
- Destination: Same as departure

## Weather

- Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day
- Wind: 20° at 5 knots, gusting 9
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling: none
- Temperature: 55 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter: 30.06 inHg
- Observed at: PASO, 1 nm away
- METAR: METAR PASO 262115Z AUTO 02005KT 10SM CLR 13/11 A3006 RMK T01300110 MADISHF.

## FAA reports on this event (1)

The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs).

- [Accident 20260826013399A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20260826013399A), Aug 26, 2026: Piper PA-24-260, Seldovia, AK, Destroyed, 4 fatal. Video and witness statements describe the aircraft appeared to approach runway 16 fast, bounced two or more times and then attempted go around. During go…

## Other investigations on N9485P (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB NYC84LA300](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC84LA300), Sep 1, 1984: Piper PA-24-260C (N9485P), Montauk, NY, substantial damage

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

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