Pilot error was the ultimate cause of a sightseeing plane’s crash just over a year ago near Petersburg which left a New Mexico man on board dead, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
A probable cause report
on the June 2, 2013 crash of the deHavilland DHC-2 Beaver seaplane,
operated by Pacific Wings LLC, was released Monday by the NTSB. The
plane had seven people on board and was flying from Petersburg’s Lloyd
R. Roundtree Seaplane Facility just before 3:20 p.m. to a sightseeing
trip over the LeConte Glacier via the Horn Cliffs.
One of the plane’s six passengers, Santa Fe, N.M. resident Thomas Rising, 66, was killed in the crash,
while Pennsylvania Rev. Frank Allen and his family survived. Allen’s
wife Amy and son Ben were treated for serious injuries at Harborview
Medical Center in Seattle, but the other four survivors on board
received only minor injuries.
In the report, the NTSB cites the
unnamed pilot’s failure to maintain airspeed both above trees and while
subsequently maneuvering to avoid them, “which resulted in an
inadvertent aerodynamic stall/spin and an uncontrolled descent.”
According
to the pilot, who had told the NTSB he was flying his third tour and
fourth flight of the day, the aircraft was traveling at 80 knots and
climbing at about 200 feet per minute shortly before the crash.
“The
pilot said that when approaching a mountain pass, he initiated a climb
by adding a ‘little bit’ of flap (about 1 pump of the flap handle
actuator) but did not adjust the engine power from the cruise power
setting,” NTSB officials wrote.
According to the pilot the crash
occurred suddenly, in weather a passenger described as consisting of
occasional low clouds and good visibility.
“(The pilot) was
having difficulty seeing over the cowling due to the nose-high attitude,
when he suddenly noticed trees in his flight path,” NTSB officials
wrote. “He initiated an immediate left turn; the airplane stalled, and
began to drop, impacting the mountainous, tree-covered terrain.”
Both
the pilot and a post-crash investigation found that the aircraft had no
mechanical issues which would have prevented its normal operation. The
passenger who spoke with the NTSB also concurred with that assessment,
based on his experience of the crash.
“He reported that the
airplane made a left turn, stalled, and then made a sharp left turn
right before impact,” NTSB officials wrote. “The airplane seemed to be
operating fine, and he heard no unusual sounds, other than the engine
speed seemed to increase significantly right before impact.”
Story and photo: http://www.ktuu.com
NTSB Identification: ANC13FA054
Nonscheduled 14 CFR Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter
Accident occurred Tuesday, June 04, 2013 in Petersburg, AK
Probable Cause Approval Date: 06/02/2014
Aircraft: DEHAVILLAND BEAVER DHC-2 MK.1, registration: N616W
Injuries: 1 Fatal,2 Serious,4 Minor.
NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
The pilot reported that the accident flight was his fourth flight and the third tour flight of the day in a float-equipped airplane. The weather had deteriorated throughout the day with lowering ceilings, light rain, and fog on the mountain ridges. The pilot said that when approaching a mountain pass, he initiated a climb by adding a “little bit” of flap (about 1 pump of the flap handle actuator) but did not adjust the engine power from the cruise power setting. He noted his airspeed at 80 knots, with a 200-feet-per-minute climb on the vertical speed indicator. He was having difficulty seeing over the cowling due to the nose-high attitude, when he suddenly noticed trees in his flight path. He initiated an immediate left turn; the airplane stalled, and began to drop, impacting the mountainous, tree-covered terrain.
A passenger reported that the weather conditions at the time of the accident consisted of tufts of low clouds, and good visibility. They did not enter the clouds at any time during the flight. He reported that the airplane made a left turn, stalled, and then made a sharp left turn right before impact. The airplane seemed to be operating fine, and he heard no unusual sounds, other than the engine speed seemed to increase significantly right before impact.
The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation, and the postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate altitude above the trees, and his subsequent failure to maintain adequate airspeed while maneuvering to avoid the trees, which resulted in an inadvertent aerodynamic stall/spin and an uncontrolled descent.
http://www.ntsb.gov
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment