Monday, August 01, 2011

Midair Collision: Cessna U206G Stationair, N756MP and Cessna 180B Skywagon, N5214E; fatal accident occurred July 70, 2011 in Talkeetna, Alaska

Location: Talkeetna, AK
Accident Number: ANC11FA071A
Date & Time: 07/30/2011, 1415 AKD
Registration: N756MP
Aircraft: CESSNA U206G
Aircraft Damage: Minor
Defining Event: Midair collision
Injuries: 1 None
Flight Conducted Under: 
Part 91: General Aviation - Personal

Analysis

Two float-equipped, high-wing airplanes, a Cessna 206 and a Cessna 180, collided in midair in day visual meteorological conditions near a remote lake, which was the destination for both airplanes. The Cessna 206 pilot stated that he was maneuvering for landing after completing a right 270-degree turn, which positioned the airplane for a left downwind approach for landing to the northeast. The Cessna 180 was flying northbound and presumably also on a left downwind approach for landing to the northeast. The airplanes were about 900 feet above ground level when the collision occurred. The pilot of the Cessna 206 said he saw the Cessna 180 approaching from the right, and he made an immediate climbing left turn just before the collision. The Cessna 180 descended vertically to the ground. The Cessna 206 continued to fly and landed safely with the outboard portion of the Cessna 180’s left wing entangled in its floats. Neither pilot was in communication with any air traffic control facility. The airplanes were operating in uncontrolled airspace.

The Cessna 206 pilot reported that he was monitoring 122.8 MHz, the common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) for the area. A pilot-rated relative of the Cessna 180 pilot said the pilot monitored 122.9 MHz on previous flights, which was the MULTICOM frequency used for off-airport operations.

A review of FAA-approved CTAF radio frequencies used in the area revealed equivocal language regarding which CTAF radio frequency should be used.  Additionally, due to a high concentration of aerodromes in the area, many of the frequency boundaries overlap.      

Given the reports of the radio frequencies that were monitored by both pilots, it is likely that, had both pilots been announcing their intentions on the same frequency, both pilots would have had increased awareness of the presence of the other airplane.

Probable Cause and Findings
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
The inadequate visual lookout and failure to see and avoid by the pilots of both airplanes while maneuvering to land, which resulted in a midair collision. Contributing to the accident was the lack of standardized, unequivocal procedures concerning common traffic advisory frequencies used in the area.

Findings

Personnel issues
Monitoring other aircraft - Pilot (Cause)
Monitoring other aircraft - Pilot of other aircraft (Cause)

Organizational issues
Communication (organizational) - FAA/Regulator (Factor)

Factual Information

HISTORY OF FLIGHT

On July 30, 2011, about 1415 Alaska daylight time, a float-equipped Cessna U206G  (206) airplane, N756MP, and a float-equipped Cessna 180B (180) airplane, N5214E, collided midair near Amber Lake, about 16 miles southwest of Talkeetna, Alaska. Each airplane was operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) personal flight under 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 in visual meteorological conditions when the accident occurred. The sole occupant of the Cessna 206, a certificated airline transport pilot, was not injured. The private pilot and three passengers of the Cessna 180 received fatal injuries. The Cessna 206 departed from Sister Lake about 1400, en route to Amber Lake. The Cessna 180 departed from Lake Hood Seaplane Base about 1330, en route to Amber Lake. The Cessna 206 sustained minor damage to its left float and float spreader. The Cessna 180, which entered an uncontrolled descent following the collision, was destroyed by the ground impact and the postcrash fire.

During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on July 31, the pilot of the Cessna 206 said that while on approach to Amber Lake he did not see the Cessna 180 coming from his right until the last seconds prior to the impact. He said he pulled his airplane up and left to avoid the collision.

In a written statement to the NTSB dated August 8, the Cessna 206 pilot reported he departed Sister Lake to the north with a right 270 degree turn due to the terrain around the lake. His destination was Amber Lake less than a mile away to the southwest. The lake elevation was approximately 450 feet above mean sea level (msl), and the weather was VFR. He flew over his cabin, which put him on a left downwind for Amber Lake on the north side. His altitude was approximately 900 to 1300 feet msl, and he had his landing and taxi lights along with strobes and beacon on. His airplane’s radio was tuned to 122.8 MHz for traffic advisories, and he did not hear the Cessna 180 pilot on that frequency. He crossed the northeast end of the lake, scanned for traffic left and right, and checked the water for conditions. He was in a very slight right bank. As he rolled out of the bank, he looked to the right because that wing had been slightly down. The other aircraft came into view on his right at the same altitude. He reacted by pulling nose hard up and rolling left. The two airplanes collided. After the collision, he called on 122.8 MHz for help in the area and called Talkeetna radio on 123.6 and 121.5 MHz, gave the location of the accident, and asked for assistance. He circled the area to assess the damage to his airplane. His airplane had a strong vibration, and it took a lot of right rudder to fly straight and a lot of elevator to hold the nose level. It also took increased power to maintain altitude. After assessing the damage and options, he decided to head for Anchorage where crash fire rescue was available. As he approached Anchorage, another aircraft flew alongside to assess the damage further. He landed the airplane on a paved runway at the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, Anchorage, without further difficulty and damage.

During an on-scene interview with the NTSB IIC on July 30, the wife of the Cessna 206 pilot said she had walked outside of their cabin to watch her husband take off. While waiting for him to depart, she saw a high-wing airplane on floats to the north of her position transit the area in an east-northeast direction. After her husband departed, she watched him heading in a northerly direction, at the same time, she saw a high-winged, float-equipped airplane crossing to the north of her from the right/east. She thought it was the same airplane that she had seen previously headed in the opposite direction. As she watched, the airplanes appeared to be converging. She saw her husband’s Cessna 206 pitch up and roll left, and the two airplanes collided. She said the airplanes seemed suspended together for a few seconds, and she saw a flash and smoke as the unknown airplane plummeted toward the ground trailing smoke.

PERSONNEL INFORMATION

Cessna 206 pilot:

At the time of the accident the pilot of the Cessna 206 was employed by a commercial air carrier as a Boeing 737 captain.

The pilot, age 56, held an airline transport pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land, airplane multi-engine land, airplane single-engine sea, and airplane multi-engine sea. His most recent first-class medical certificate was issued on February 18, 2011, and contained the limitation that he must possess glasses.

According to records provided by the pilot, he had logged about 19,100 hours of flight experience at the time of the accident. He also passed a currency check ride (biennial equivalent) on July 9, 2011.

Cessna 180 pilot:

The pilot of the Cessna 180, age 41, held a private pilot certificate with a rating for airplane single-engine land and airplane single-engine sea. He was issued a third-class airman medical certificate with limitations to wear corrective lenses on July 30, 2007.

No personal flight records were located for the pilot, and the aeronautical experience listed on page 3 of this report was obtained from a review of the airman’s FAA records on file in the Airman and Medical Records Center in Oklahoma City. On the pilot’s last application for a medical certificate, dated July 30, 2007, he indicated that his total aeronautical experience consisted of about 220 hours, of which 50 were accrued in the previous 6 months.

AIRCRAFT INFORMATION

Cessna 206:

The airplane was a Cessna 206, manufactured in 1977 and equipped with a Continental Motors IO-520 series engine.

At the time of its last annual inspection, completed on June 21, 2011, the airplane had 2,530 hours in service.

The colors of the airplane included a primary base color of white with red accent lines.

The airplane was equipped with AEROFLASH wingtip and tail strobe lights, which were operating at the time of the collision.

Cessna 180:

The airplane was a Cessna 180 manufactured in 1959, and equipped with a Continental Motors O-470 series engine.

No airplane and engine log books were discovered for examination.

The colors of the airplane included a primary base color of white with burgundy and grey accent lines.

According to a relative, the Cessna 180 was equipped with RMB tail and wingtip strobe lights. He said it was the habit of the pilot to fly with the strobe lights on at all times.

METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION

The closest official weather observation station is Talkeetna, Alaska, about 16 miles northeast of the accident site. At 1353, an aviation routine weather report (METAR) was reporting, in part: Wind 210 degrees (true) at 5 knots; visibility 10 statute miles; sky condition, few at 3,500 feet; temperature 66 degrees F; dew point 50 degrees F; altimeter 29.77 inHg.

COMMUNICATIONS

No air traffic control services were requested by either airplane.

An FAA publication dated May 14, 2008, titled, “Your Role in Collision Avoidance,” suggests that pilots make frequent position reports along their route and, at uncontrolled airports, broadcast their positions and intentions on common traffic advisory frequencies (CTAF).

Additionally, in an FAA article titled, “Recommended Traffic Advisory Practices,” pilots of inbound traffic should monitor and communicate as appropriate on the designated CTAF from 10 miles to landing. Pilots of departing aircraft should monitor/communicate on the appropriate frequency from start-up, during taxi, and until 10 miles from the airport unless the CFRs or local procedures require otherwise.

According to the Airman’s Information Manual (AIM), the CTAF frequency for a particular airport is contained in the A/FD, Alaska Supplement, Alaska Terminal Publication, Instrument Approach Procedure Charts, and Instrument Departure Procedure (DP) Charts. Also, the CTAF frequency can be obtained by contacting any FSS. Use of the appropriate CTAF, combined with a visual alertness and application of the following recommended good operating practices, will enhance safety of flight into and out of all uncontrolled airports.

According to the FAA’s Alaska Supplement, the CTAF for airports south and west of the Parks Highway, which includes the area of the accident, is 122.8 MHz. The supplement further states that airports north and east of the Parks Highway will be assigned CTAF frequencies of 122.9 MHz.

FAA advisory circular AC 90-42F defines a CTAF as a designated frequency for the purpose of carrying out airport advisory practices while operating to or from an airport that does not have a control tower or an airport where the control tower is not operational. The CTAF is normally a UNICOM, MULTICOM, flight service station (FSS) frequency, or a tower frequency. MULTICOM - A mobile service, not open to public use, used for essential communications in the conduct of activities performed by or directed from private aircraft.

Note: Airports such as Nugget Bench and Skwentna, which are south and west of the Parks Highway near the accident site, have been allocated radio frequencies of 122.9 MHz.

Although the definition of CTAF and MULTICOM speak to airport operations, CTAF has been associated with air-to-air communications in FAA publications. Examples of such air-to-air CTAFs are the Denali Flight Advisory, White Mountains area Flight Advisory, and Lake Clark Pass CTAF, all of which are contained in the FAA Alaska Supplement and involve only air-to-air communications.

According to the pilot of the Cessna 206, he was transmitting position reports and listening on 122.8 MHz, the CTAF frequency designated for the area in the FAA Alaska Supplement.

According to a pilot-rated member of the Cessna 180 pilot’s family, another pilot heard the Cessna 180 pilot making position reports on 122.9 MHz at the time of the accident. The family member said communicating on 122.9 MHz, MULTICOM, was the common practice used by the Cessna 180 pilot and himself at all remote lakes.

Note that both airplanes were operating in ‘Class G’ airspace, and there is no regulatory requirement for either airplane to be equipped with two-way radio communications. 

WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION

Cessna 206:

The Cessna 206 landed on a paved runway at a tower controlled airport.

An examination of the Cessna 206 showed minor scars and marks, and a hole in its left float.

The left wing section and the left aileron of the Cessna 180 was lodged in the left float assembly of the 206 with the wingtip protruding outboard of the 206’s left float. The left wingtip of the 180 had penetrated the space between the 206’s left fore and aft vertical float supports and the top deck and the bottom of the left float’s cabin step. The top skin of the 180’s wing was peeled back along the span of the wing, and the trailing edge of the 180’s aileron had impacted and became entangled on the rear float support of the 206. The inboard edge of the 180’s wing portion showed metal tearing around its circumference. Remnants of the 180’s ruptured wing fuel tank were still attached, and smoke soot was visible.

Cessna 180:

On July 30, 2011, the NTSB IIC, along with an FAA air safety inspector from the Anchorage Flight Standards District Office (FSDO), examined the Cessna 180 wreckage at the accident site.

The airplane crashed vertically into a moderately wooded area next to a dirt road, within 300 feet of the edge of a lake that was adjacent to Amber Lake.

The majority of the passenger compartment and right wing were consumed by a postcrash fire. The left wing was missing its outboard portion, from the aileron outward. The left wing skins showed signs of tearing. The empennage was mostly intact. Due to the postcrash fire, control continuity could not be established, and the instrumentation could not be documented. The three-bladed propeller broke off the engine at the propeller flange and showed moderate torsional twisting and bending.

MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION

A postmortem examination of the Cessna 180 pilot was done under the authority of the Alaska State Medical Examiner, Anchorage, Alaska, on August 1, 2011. The examination revealed that the cause of death was attributed to blunt force trauma and thermal injuries.

A toxicological examination by the FAA’s Civil Aeromedical Institute (CAMI) on October 5, 2011, was negative for any alcohol or drugs.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Title 14 CFR 91.113, “Right-of-way rules: Except water operations,” states the following: (a) Inapplicability. This section does not apply to the operation of an aircraft on water. (b) General. When weather conditions permit, regardless of whether an operation is conducted under instrument flight rules or visual flight rules, vigilance shall be maintained by each person operating an aircraft so as to see and avoid other aircraft. When a rule of this section gives another aircraft the right-of-way, the pilot shall give way to that aircraft and may not pass over, under, or ahead of it unless well clear.

Title 15 CFR 91.103 describes the pilot-in-command's preflight duties as follows: "Each pilot in command shall, before beginning a flight, become familiar with all available information concerning that flight."

Mat Su Mid-Air Working Group

A review of the CTAF frequencies used in the area around the accident site revealed the use of two primary radio frequencies, 122.8 and 122.9, but due to the high concentration of aerodromes in the area, many of the frequency boundaries overlap. 

As a result of this accident, representatives from the FAA, Aircraft Owners and Pilots association (AOPA), Alaska Airmen’s Association, and the Alaskan Aviation Safety Foundation, along with other aviation industry and government organizations formed the Mat Su Mid-Air Collision Avoidance Working Group. The purpose of the group was to identify inconstancies and confusing guidance concerning CTAF frequencies, and then provide the FAA with suggested recommendations to establish effective advisory radio frequencies.

History of Flight

Maneuvering
Midair collision (Defining event) 

Pilot Information

Certificate: Airline Transport; Flight Instructor; Commercial; Flight Engineer
Age: 56, Male
Airplane Rating(s): Multi-engine Land; Multi-engine Sea; Single-engine Land; Single-engine Sea
Seat Occupied: Left
Other Aircraft Rating(s): None
Restraint Used: Seatbelt, Shoulder harness
Instrument Rating(s): Airplane
Second Pilot Present: No
Instructor Rating(s): Airplane Multi-engine; Airplane Single-engine; Instrument Airplane
Toxicology Performed: No
Medical Certification: Class 1 With Waivers/Limitations
Last FAA Medical Exam: 02/18/2011
Occupational Pilot: Yes
Last Flight Review or Equivalent: 07/09/2011
Flight Time: 19100 hours (Total, all aircraft)

Aircraft and Owner/Operator Information

Aircraft Make: CESSNA
Registration: N756MP
Model/Series: U206G
Aircraft Category: Airplane
Year of Manufacture:
Amateur Built: No
Airworthiness Certificate: Normal
Serial Number: U20604202
Landing Gear Type: Float
Seats: 6
Date/Type of Last Inspection: 06/21/2011, Annual
Certified Max Gross Wt.: 3600 lbs
Time Since Last Inspection:
Engines: 1 Reciprocating
Airframe Total Time: 2593 Hours as of last inspection
Engine Manufacturer: CONT MOTOR
ELT: Installed, not activated
Engine Model/Series: IO 520 SERIES
Registered Owner: EARP KEVIN W
Rated Power: 285 hp
Operator: EARP KEVIN W
Operating Certificate(s) Held: None 

Meteorological Information and Flight Plan

Conditions at Accident Site: Visual Conditions
Condition of Light: Day
Observation Facility, Elevation:
Distance from Accident Site:
Observation Time:
Direction from Accident Site:
Lowest Cloud Condition:
Visibility:  10 Miles
Lowest Ceiling: Broken / 4500 ft agl
Visibility (RVR):
Wind Speed/Gusts: Light and Variable /
Turbulence Type Forecast/Actual:
Wind Direction: Variable
Turbulence Severity Forecast/Actual: 
Altimeter Setting:
Temperature/Dew Point:
Precipitation and Obscuration:
Departure Point: Talkeetna, AK
Type of Flight Plan Filed: Unknown
Destination: Talkeetna, AK
Type of Clearance: None
Departure Time: 1410 ADT
Type of Airspace: 

Wreckage and Impact Information

Crew Injuries: 1 None
Aircraft Damage: Minor
Passenger Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Fire: None
Ground Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Explosion: None
Total Injuries: 1 None
Latitude, Longitude: 62.181667, -150.506667

Pilot Corey Carlson and his wife Hetty along with their daughters Ella, 5, and Addie, 3, lost their lives in a floatplane crash after a mid-air collision near Amber Lake in the Trapper Creek area July 30, 2011. The pilot of the other floatplane was able to land safely in Anchorage.


The midair collision Saturday near Trapper Creek killed a family of four with long roots in Alaska.

The pilot was Corey Carlson, a former Anchorage high school hockey star and scholarship college player; his wife, Hetty Barnett Carlson, whose family goes back generations here; and their two young children, Ella, 5 and Adelaide "Addie," 3, Corey's father, Don Carlson of Anchorage, said Sunday.

Troopers are waiting for the state medical examiner to positively identify the four before officially releasing the names.

But authorities told the parents of both Corey and Hetty Carlson Saturday evening that "they were all gone," Don Carlson said.

The two floatplanes collided about 2:15 p.m. Saturday near Amber Lake, about 12 miles southwest of Trapper Creek.

The second plane, a Cessna 206, was flown by Kevin Earp, 56, of Eagle River. Its floats were heavily damaged but Earp, a veteran Alaska Airlines captain, was able to get to Anchorage and safely land on a runway at Stevens International Airport, according to troopers.

Corey Carlson was flying his Cessna 180, which crashed and burned on the ground. The only part left was the tail section, according to a National Transportation Safety Board investigator.

Carlson, 41, had planned to go to Lake Clark, where Hetty's family has a cabin, but the weather in that area wasn't good and the mountain pass to the lake can be treacherous. So he headed north to Amber Lake instead.

As Carlson and his family were leaving Lake Hood, Hetty's parents, David and Diane Barnett, were flying back from Lake Clark, trying to get ahead of the weather.

"We passed them, them going out, us coming in," David Barnett said.

Carlson and his father-in-law heard each other on the radio getting clearance from the tower.

Maybe 30 minutes later, all four members of the young Carlson family were dead.

"THE LAST INSTANT"

Witnesses told the National Transportation Safety Board that the Cessna 206 had taken off from a smaller nearby lake and was turning west toward Amber Lake to pick up a relative as the 180 was flying by, said Larry Lewis, National Transportation Safety Board investigator.

Along with a place at Lake Clark, the Barnett family has a small cabin at Amber Lake that Hetty's grandfather built. Carlson likely was preparing to land there for a few hours of fun on shore when the planes collided, David Barnett said.

The weather was good, but it is hard for a pilot to spot another small plane in the sky, Lewis said. Almost three weeks earlier, two planes hit midair in Lake Clark Pass. In that case, both pilots managed to land safely in Anchorage.

Earp told an investigator "he saw the aircraft at the very last instant and tried to steer away from him but couldn't," Lewis said. It appears the other pilot never saw Earp's plane, Lewis said.

The planes were at right angles to each other, like cars pulling up to a four-way stop, except both were moving.

"If you are level with each other, the mountains in the background would obscure the airplane in front of you," Lewis said. "90 degrees to each other -- it's a pretty small target."

Lewis said he's just beginning his investigation. He inspected the crash site Saturday and planned to do a follow-up interview with Earp.

Earp has been with Alaska Airlines 30 years. He has logged 17,000 hours flying Boeing 737s, plus thousands of hours more in other planes, according to spokeswoman Bobbie Egan. Efforts to reach Earp Sunday were unsuccessful.

DEVASTATED FAMILIES

Family members and friends were struggling Sunday to absorb the sudden loss of a couple who seemed to have everything going their way.

Carlson had lived in Alaska since he was 5. He was a standout hockey forward for Service High, and was among the first generation of Alaskans who went Outside to play junior league hockey. He landed a full scholarship at the University of Denver, a Division I school, but suffered a back injury that affected his playing. He earned a master's degree in business and came home to Alaska.

Carlson worked as an Anchorage-based manager for a branch of GE involved in oil and gas production, his father said.

He immersed himself in the pursuits that draw so many here.

"Hunting, fishing, catching shrimp, skiing down the mountains and doing all that young stuff," Don Carlson said. "And when he got married, he decided to get an airplane. He always wanted to fly."

Hetty, 39, was a fourth-generation Alaskan, a graduate of West High School and Colorado State University in Fort Collins, David Barnett said. She returned to Anchorage and worked as a pharmaceutical company representative.

She and Carlson married in Hawaii eight years ago, and when their girls were born, she stayed home to take care of them. Carlson doted on them too and was wonderful to Hetty, Barnett said. They were the dream family.

"It was just too good to be true," Barnett said. "It just doesn't get any better. You just thank God for the things like that."

About six years ago, Carlson began flying. The couple and their girls loved going out in the plane, relatives said.

"That was their minivan," said his sister, Kim Bonebrake, who flew up from Vancouver, Wash., when she heard about the crash. People Outside don't get how important, and common, small planes are up here, she said.

On Saturday, the family clearly planned to be gone just a few hours because they left their beloved dog, Amber, in the yard, Don Carlson said.

Was the dog named after the lake? "No, after the beer," Don Carlson said, chuckling a little.

On Saturday evening, all four parents -- David and Diane Barnett, Don and Pat Carlson -- gathered at the Barnett home, where authorities confirmed what they feared.
Don Carlson said Sunday he was focusing on the many tasks that had to be done. He was trying not to lose himself in grief: "It's almost more than I can handle."

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