ERA26FA205 · Cessna A185F

On May 12, 2026, about 1058 eastern daylight time, a Cessna A185F airplane, N61368, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Avon, Maine. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was owned by the state of Maine and operated as a public use aircraft. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife, Maine Warden Service reported that the flight originated from a seaplane base on Crystal Lake, Harrison, ME, and repositioned to Rangeley Lake to load fish for the purpose of stocking Schoolhouse Pond, a local body of water. The airplane was equipped with floats and two fish pods, one mounted on each float which were electronically dumped via pilot activated instrument panel mounted controls. Following the repositioning, the airplane’s right pod was loaded with about 12 gallons of water and 42 lbs. of fish. According to preliminary ADS-B data from the FAA, the airplane departed Rangely Lake at about 1030 and proceeded to the southeast for about 21 miles to Schoolhouse Pond. The airplane continued about 1.5 miles east of the pond, turned left and flew along the pond’s eastern shore in a southwesterly direction. The final data points showed the airplane in a right turn about 400 yards southwest of Schoolhouse Pond. The wreckage was located on rising terrain in a densely wooded area about 400 yards southwest of Schoolhouse Pond. The airplane came to rest in a nose down attitude and all the major components of the airplane were accounted for at the accident site. The floats remained attached to the fuselage and exhibited leading-edge impact damage. Fish from the stocking operation were observed in the right fish pod and on the ground adjacent to the right fish pod. There was an odor of fuel observed at the accident site, and numerous tree branches near the main wreckage exhibited angular separations with paint transfer marks at their separation areas. The empennage was relatively undamaged. The wings exhibited leading-edge impact damage, were displaced forward and partially separated from the fuselage. The pilot and copilot seats were impact damaged and the seat rails were deformed. The instrument panel was fragmented. The fuel selector was positioned to BOTH, and fuel line continuity was established from the fuel tanks to the gascolator. The flaps were noted in the 20° position, and flight control continuity was established from the cockpit area to all the flight control surfaces. The engine was partially separated from the firewall. The three-bladed aluminum propeller was impact separated from the engine and remained attached to the separated crankshaft flange. Leading-edge damage was noted to the propeller blades. The wreckage was retained for further examination.

Verbatim NTSB factual narrative from the NTSB dataset