Cessna 208B accident near Barrow, AK
On November 8, 1997, a Cessna 208B (airplane) was involved in an accident near Barrow, AK. 8 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- November 8, 1997
- Place
- Barrow, AK
- Aircraft
- Cessna 208B · Airplane
- Injuries
- 8 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 71.280°N, 156.780°W
- NTSB ID
- 20001208X09127
Official records · ANC98MA008
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- Communications Transcripts: Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On November 8, 1997, at 0808 Alaska standard time, a Cessna 208B airplane, N750GC, was destroyed when it impacted water in the Arctic Ocean, about one-half mile west of Barrow, Alaska. The airline transport certificated pilot, and the seven passengers on board, sustained fatal injuries. The airplane was operated by Hageland Aviation Services, Inc., of St. Mary's, Alaska, under 14 CFR Part 135, as scheduled commuter Flight 500. The destination was Wainwright, Alaska. Night, visual meteorological conditions (VMC) prevailed at the time of the accident, and a VFR flight plan was filed. At 0802, the pilot radioed to the FAA Flight Service Station (FSS) that he was taxiing for takeoff, and filed a flight plan to Wainwright with eight persons on board, two hours en route, and three hours of fuel. At 0804, the pilot reported that he was back taxiing for runway 24. At 0806, he transmitted that he was departing runway 24. At 0808, two annunciations of an Emergency Locator Transmitter(ELT) were heard on 121.5 MHz by the FSS specialist on duty. The pilot of a Cessna 207 which had earlier departed runway 06 for Wainwright reported hearing the pilot say, "mayday, mayday" and that he saw the airplane's lights descend "straight down into the water." The witness pilot had been talking previously to the accident pilot on 127.77 MHz, and overheard the "mayday" call on that frequency. The witness pilot revealed that he was at 700 feet MSL, and that the accident airplane never reached his altitude. The airplane came to rest submerged in twenty-one feet of water, approximately
Probable cause
The pilot's disregard for lateral fuel loading limits, his improper removal of frost prior to takeoff, and the resulting inadvertent stall/spin. Factors involved in this accident were the improper asymmetrical fuel loading which reduced lateral aircraft control, the self-induced pressure to takeoff on time by the pilot, and inadequate surveillance of the company operations by company management.
More accidents in AK
- Beech 1900C, Nov 23, 1987
- Textron Aviation Inc 208B, Feb 6, 2025
- Dehavilland DHC-3, Jul 7, 2013
- Cessna 208, Oct 10, 2001
- Dehavilland DHC-3, Jun 25, 2015
Browse: Alaska · Cessna aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
