diff --git a/src/cmd/dist/test.go b/src/cmd/dist/test.go
index 2c114be93f..42fd914bb1 100644
--- a/src/cmd/dist/test.go
+++ b/src/cmd/dist/test.go
@@ -746,8 +746,10 @@ func (t *tester) supportedBuildmode(mode string) bool {
 		}
 		return false
 	case "plugin":
+		// linux-arm64 is missing because it causes the external linker
+		// to crash, see https://golang.org/issue/17138
 		switch pair {
-		case "linux-386", "linux-amd64", "linux-arm", "linux-arm64":
+		case "linux-386", "linux-amd64", "linux-arm":
 			return true
 		}
 		return false