Cessna 172 accident near Eagle River, AK
On September 3, 1996, a Cessna 172 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Eagle River, AK. 3 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- September 3, 1996
- Place
- Eagle River, AK
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 3 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 61.210°N, 149.250°W
- NTSB ID
- 20001208X06645
NTSB summary
History of the Flight On September 2, 1996, at an estimated time of 1730 Alaska daylight time, a wheel equipped Cessna 172, N8739B, collided with mountainous terrain about 9 miles east of Eagle River, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) local area personal flight when the accident occurred. The airplane, registered to the first pilot, was destroyed. The first pilot and second pilot, both certificated airline transport pilots, and the passenger received fatal injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. A VFR flight plan was filed by the first pilot. The flight originated at the Anchorage International airport, Anchorage, Alaska, at 1640. Personal friends and relatives reported the second pilot and the passenger arranged for the accident flight with the first pilot. The passenger was planning to go sheep hunting and the purpose of the flight was to conduct an aerial scouting of the Chugach Mountains for sheep. At 1526:02, the first pilot contacted the Kenai Automated Flight Service Station (AFSS) by telephone and filed a local area, round robin, VFR flight plan. The flight plan included a departure time of 1600 from Anchorage, and a route of flight than included Peters Creek and Eklutna Lake, located within 30 nautical miles northeast of Anchorage, with a return to Anchorage. The time enroute was listed as 2 hours, with 4 hours of fuel on-board the airplane. The first pilot listed her name as the pilot of the airplane. The first pilot then inquired about the radio frequency to open the flight plan. She also inquired about any notic
Probable cause
The first pilot's failure to maintain sufficient distance/altitude from terrain. A box canyon and mountainous terrain are factors in the accident.
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Browse: Alaska · Cessna aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
