- Date
- July 30, 1985, 22:15 local (Jul 31, 1985, 06:15 UTC)
- Place
- Kustatan River, AK
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N1104NPiper PA-18
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19850730035269A
- Case key
- 4532
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 plt reported that he landed the float plane on the Kustatan River to fish. Later, when he was departing, he selected an area that required negotiating a turn on the step. He reported that there was a 10 to 12 knot headwind that became a quartering headwind as he approached the lift-off point. However, at that point, the wind was blocked by trees to virtually no wind. Reportedly, he did not have sufficient airspeed when the acft lifted off. Shortly after lift-off, the acft stalled. Subsequently, it settled to the surface & nosed over before coming to rest next to a sand bar. The plt did not possess a sea plane rating.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1104N
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 187579
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Randy Pope
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 10, 1984
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
- 32
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 344 total · 344 in this make and model · 300 as pilot in command · 125 in the last 90 days · 50 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 30 °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.