- Date
- January 25, 1982, 11:15 local (15:15 UTC)
- Place
- Bethel, AK
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N71734Cessna 182M
- Weather
- Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 25, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19820125001809A
- Case key
- 69936
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot filed a VFR, round robin, flight plan. When the time on the flight plan had elapsed, a search was initiated. Later, the plane was found where it had crashed on a frozen lake surrounded by low terrain. An examination of the wreckage revealed that the plane had disintegrated during impact. All of the wreckage was contained within an area starting from the impact point and extending along a straight line. No pre-crash component or system functional failures were evident. One pilot, flying in the area of the accident, reported a sky condition as low as 500 ft overcast with two miles visibility and light snow showers. Another pilot in the area reported near white-out conditions.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N71734
- Reported as
- Cessna 182M
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18259734
- Airframe hours
- 2,050
- Engine
- Continental O-470, 230 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Gerald F. Dahl
- Registered owner
- Gerald F. Dahl
- Departed
- Bethel, AK
- Destination
- Eek, AK
- Flight plan
- VFR
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 43
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 358 total · 139 in this make and model · 327 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Day
- Wind
- 6° at 11 knots
- Temperature
- 66 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.