Dehavilland DHC-3 accident near Yakutat, AK
On May 24, 2022, a Dehavilland DHC-3 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Yakutat, AK. 4 people were seriously injured. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- May 24, 2022
- Place
- Yakutat, AK
- Aircraft
- Dehavilland DHC-3 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 0 fatal, 4 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 59.164°N, 138.489°W
- NTSB ID
- 20220525105132
Official records · ANC22LA035
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn May 24, 2022, about 1510 Alaska daylight time, a de Havilland DHC-3 Turbine Otter airplane, N703TH, sustained substantial damage when it was involved in an accident near Yakutat, Alaska. The pilot and three passengers were seriously injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 135 on demand charter flight. The flight, operated by Yakutat Coastal Airlines, had departed from Yakutat Airport (PAYA), Yakutat, Alaska, destined for Dry Bay Airport (3AK), Yakutat, Alaska. The pilot reported that during takeoff from PAYA, the tail came up slightly and then fell back to the runway when he attempted to raise the tail of the airplane by applying forward elevator. He thought this was unusual and attributed it to an aft-loaded airplane. The pilot applied additional nose-down trim and departed without incident. He stated that, while en route, the tail of the airplane seemed to move up and down, which he attributed to turbulence. Upon arrival at 3AK, he entered a left downwind for runway 23. At an altitude of about 600 ft, he reduced the power and extended the flaps to 10° abeam the end of the runway. He turned onto the base leg about ½ mile from the approach end of the runway and slowed the airplane to 80 mph. Turning final, he noticed the airplane seemed to pitch up, so he applied full nose-down pitch trim and extended the flaps an additional 10°. On short final, he applied full flaps, and the airplane abruptly pitched up to about a 45° angle. He stated that he applied full nose-down elevator, verified the pitch trim, and reduced
Probable cause
The pilot’s failure to determine the actual weight and balance of the airplane before departure, which resulted in the airplane being operated outside of the aft center of gravity limits and the subsequent aerodynamic stall on final approach. Contributing to the accident was the Federal Aviation Administration's failure to require weight and balance documentation for 14 Code of Federal Regulations
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 · Dehavilland 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.
