NTSB CAROL · Event
Event SEA89LA054
Registry · N79PK
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
CESSNA A185F
Year of manufacture
1979 · 10 years old at event
Engine
CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 hp)
Seats / Engines
6 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19981223
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S AAB6FB
Registrant of record
BOTTTOMLEY WILLIAM K
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO COMPENSATE FOR THE LOSS OF LIFT DUE TO ICE ACCUMULATION ON THE WINGS, HIS FAILURE TO CONTROL THE RATE OF DESCENT, AND POOR INFLIGHT DECISION MAKING. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE PILOT'S FATIGUE.
Factual narrative
THE PILOT AND PASSENGER STATED THAT ICE HAD ACCUMULATED ON THE AIRPLANE DURING THE FLIGHT. THE PILOT STATED THAT HE WAS FATIGUED FROM THE LONG FLIGHT. THE PASSENGER ESTIMATED THE ICE WAS ABOUT 1 TO 2 INCHES THICK AND THAT ON THE BASE TO FINAL TURN THE AIRPLANE BANKED TO APPROXIMATELY 30 DEGREES. THE RATE OF DESCENT INCREASED AND THE PILOT WAS UNABLE TO ARREST THE DESCENT BEFORE THE AIRPLANE LANDED HARD SHORT OF THE RUNWAY. THE AIRPLANE STRUCK THE APPROACH LIGHTS BEFORE COMING TO REST. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1989_SEA89LA054.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type. Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2022 · Journal article (IJAAA)
Comparison of Schedules, Stress, Sleep Problems, Fatigue, Mental Health and Well-being of Low Cost and Network Carrier Pilots
Objective This research investigates and compares working-conditions, duty rosters, stress, sleep problems, fatigue levels, mental health, and well-being of pilots working for network (NWCs), and low-…
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 1996 · Journal article (JAAER)
The Edwards Personal Preference Schedule as a Predictor of Success in a Collegiate Professional Pilot Training Program
This study examined the preliminary results of a project designed to identify a method to predict successful student completion of a collegiate professional pilot curriculum.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 1994 · Journal article (JAAER)
Testing for the Existence of the Pilot Personality Profile in Collegiate Professional Pilot Candidates
This study explored the existence of the so-called pilot's personality profile in collegiate professional pilot candidates, based on selected factors of the Edwards Personality Preference Schedule (EP…
Browse the full corpus — academia portal ↗