De Havilland DHC-2 MK3 accident near Aleknagik, AK
On August 29, 2002, a De Havilland DHC-2 MK3 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Aleknagik, AK. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- August 29, 2002
- Place
- Aleknagik, AK
- Aircraft
- De Havilland DHC-2 MK3 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 59.433°N, 158.850°W
- NTSB ID
- 20020910X01575
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On August 28, 2002, about 1600 Alaska daylight time, an amphibious float-equipped de Havilland DHC-2 MK 3 airplane, N4478, sustained substantial damage when it nosed over after landing with its wheels extended, on Lake Nerka, about 15 miles northwest of Aleknagik, Alaska. The airplane was being operated by General Communications Incorporated (GCI) of Anchorage, Alaska, as a visual flight rules (VFR) business flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The airline transport pilot received fatal injuries, one passenger received minor injuries, and the remaining passenger was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and company flight following procedures were in effect. The flight departed from a paved runway at the Dillingham Airport, Dillingham, Alaska, about 1540. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on August 28, a GCI manager said he was calling to report an airplane accident at GCI's lodge at River Bay, on Lake Nerka. He said he received a telephone call from the lodge informing him that the company airplane, which was on amphibious floats, had landed on the lake in front of the lodge with its wheels extended. He said the airplane had apparently nosed over, and was floating upside down on the lake. He said the two passengers had been rescued, and a search for the pilot was in progress. According to GCI's lodge manager/pilot, the pilot of the accident airplane was a relief pilot who had been flying the airplane for about a week. He said the a
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to use a checklist to ensure the airplane was in the proper landing configuration, which precipitated an inadvertent water landing on amphibious floats with the wheels extended. A factor contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to secure the cargo in the aft cabin.
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Browse: Alaska · De Havilland 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.
