Fairbanks - Gulkana - Galena - Nome

On November 23, 1973 at 11:35 AM, Fairbanks - Gulkana - Galena - Nome experienced a crash involving Rockwell Aero Commander 560, operated by Fort Wainwright Air, with the event recorded near Galena Alaska.

The flight was categorized as private and the reported phase was landing (descent or approach) at a airport (less than 10 km from airport) crash site.

6 people were known to be on board, 1 fatalities were recorded, 5 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 16.7%.

Crew on board: 1, crew fatalities: 1, passengers on board: 5, passenger fatalities: 0, other fatalities: 0.

The listed crash cause is human factor. The twin engine airplane was completing a flight from Fairbanks to Nome with intermediate stops in Gulkana and Galena. On approach to Galena, the pilot encountered poor weather conditions with low ceiling, fog and snow falls reducing the visibility to 1,000 feet. On final under VFR mode, he was unable to locate the runway when he realized he was facing the tower. He initiated a turn to avoid collision when he lost control of the airplane that crashed near the runway. All five passengers were seriously injured while the pilot was killed.

Aircraft reference details include registration N12317, MSN 560-243, year of manufacture 1955.

Geospatial coordinates for this crash are approximately 64.7336°, -156.9316°.