- Date
- September 3, 1990, 15:20 local (23:20 UTC)
- Place
- Kaltag, AK
- Injuries
- 3 fatal, 6 serious, 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N59783Piper PA-31-325
- Weather
- Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 10, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19900903037619A
- Case key
- 5307
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
Failure of the pilot to maintain adequate altitude after becoming distracted with an engine problem. Factors related to the accident were: loss of power in the #2 engine for an unknown reason and the low overcast condition.
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 reported that the #2 engine began to lose power as he was flying under a low overcast & about 500 ft above a river. Subsequently, the airplane descended & the fuselage & left propeller contacted the water. With these problems & decreasing visibility ahead, the pilot elected to make a 180 degree turn. He said that about midway through the turn, the #2 engine lost all power. The airplane then crashed into trees & was destroyed by a post-impact fire. No reason was found for either engine to lose power before water or tree contact.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N59783
- Reported as
- Piper PA-31-325
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 31-7612024
- Engine
- Lycoming TIO-540-F2BD, 325 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Frontier Flying Service
- Registered owner
- Christopher A. Stepovich
- Departed
- NUL · Nulato, AK
- Destination
- KAL · Kaltag, AK
- Airport
- NONE
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
- 34
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 8,150 total · 500 in this make and model · 6,943 as pilot in command · 300 in the last 90 days · 100 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Day
- Wind
- 220° at 5 knots, gusting 7
- Visibility
- 2 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 700 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 45 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.