- Date
- September 7, 1990, 18:25 local (Sep 8, 1990, 02:25 UTC)
- Place
- Glacier Island, AK
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N393HMPiper PA-32RT-300T
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 5, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19900907042289A
- Case key
- 5452
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
Undetermined mechanical failure(s) that resulted in loss of engine power, smoke in the cockpit, and a subsequent emergency descent for a forced landing (ditching) at sea. The lack of suitable terrain for a forced landing was a related factor.
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
About 20 minutes after taking off on a VFR flight from valdez to palmer, AK, the pilot reported a rough-running engine and smoke in the cabin. About one minute later, he reported that he was losing visibility because of smoke in the cabin and declared an emergency. Radio contact with the aircraft was lost, and it was presumed to have crashed in prince william sound near Glacier Island, about 30 miles west-southwest of the departure point. Four days later, the passenger's body was recovered from the water in that area. A post-mortem exam revealed the passenger had drowned. On 9/10/90, a 4 ft section of one of the aircrat's wings was found on a beach about 2-1/2 miles from where the passenger's body was found.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N393HM
- Reported as
- Piper PA-32RT-300T (PA-32RT-30)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 32R-7887083
- Engine
- Lycoming TIO-540-S1AD, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- Unknown
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Deborah G. & James D. Ginotti
- Departed
- VDZ · Valdez, AK
- Destination
- PAQ · Palmer, AK
- Flight plan
- VFR
- 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
- 59
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 1,010 total · 500 in this make and model · 865 as pilot in command · 25 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 59 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- VDZ, 30 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.