What happened
The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.
On the morning of the accident, the float-equipped aircraft was conducting public fish stocking operations. Prior to the flight to the stocking location, the aircraft was serviced with fuel at crystal lake in gray, Maine, and subsequently transitioned to rangeley, Maine, where live cargo was loaded into a single transport pod located on the right side of the aircraft.
The flight proceeded to the designated drop zone at schoolhouse pond in Avon, Maine. The pilot executed a low-level reconnaissance overflight of the target area to evaluate environmental conditions and obstacles. While banking the aircraft back toward the pond to align for the stocking run, control was lost, initiating the accident sequence.
The aircraft impacted trees before colliding with terrain in a steep, nose-down attitude. Multiple recovered tree branches exhibited clean cuts and deep gouging consistent with high-velocity propeller rotation at the time of impact. Both wing leading edges sustained localized deformation and impact signatures directly matching tree-trunk and branch contact.
The main fuselage and heavy components came to rest down-path from the initial strike zone. Portions of the right wing tip assembly were located at the base of the initial tree strike, with the remainder of the fragmented components situated beneath the main wreckage.
An examination of the airframe structural components revealed the following:
• Left wing: remained partially oriented to the fuselage but sustained slight displacement and a complete fracture of the aft spar attachment point.
• Right wing: sustained catastrophic structural separation. The wing was fully displaced and torn from both the primary spar fittings and the external strut fitting, remaining associated with the main wreckage solely by its internal flight control cables.
• Empennage: the empennage structure, including the vertical stabilizer, horizontal stabilizers, and associated elevator and rudder control surfaces, was found intact and undamaged.
• Fuselage and cockpit: the forward fuselage sustained severe crushing damage, and the cockpit cabin enclosure was deformed inward. Both the primary instrument panel and the dual flight control yokes suffered widespread impact-fractures. Oxygen tanks used to oxygenate the fish cargo broke free from the restraint system behind the pilot seats and became projectiles during the crash sequence.
• Float assembly: the float structures exhibited severe upward crushing and localized structural tearing concentrated at the forward tip of each float.
An examination of the powerplant and propeller assembly revealed the following:
• Engine: the engine module sustained rearward and leftward displacement. While the engine remained secured to its structural mount truss, the truss assembly had completely separated from the fuselage hardpoints under impact loading.
• Propeller: the propeller assembly completely detached from the engine crankshaft flange, while the propeller spinner exhibited minimal deformation. All blades remained mechanically secured to the propeller hub. Each blade exhibited severe torsional twisting, bending, and leading-edge gouging, consistent with a high-power, high-rpm rotational state during initial obstruction contact.
An examination of the specialized cargo system revealed the following:
• Left transport tank: found intact and secured in the fully "dumped" position.
Right transport tank: displaced from its structural airframe mounts by impact forces but remained filled with water and fish cargo.
As the FAA filed it
ON THE MORNING OF THE ACCIDENT, THE FLOAT-EQUIPPED AIRCRAFT WAS CONDUCTING PUBLIC FISH STOCKING OPERATIONS. PRIOR TO THE FLIGHT TO THE STOCKING LOCATION, THE AIRCRAFT WAS SERVICED WITH FUEL AT CRYSTAL LAKE IN GRAY, MAINE, AND SUBSEQUENTLY TRANSITIONED TO RANGELEY, MAINE, WHERE LIVE CARGO WAS LOADED INTO A SINGLE TRANSPORT POD LOCATED ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE AIRCRAFT.
THE FLIGHT PROCEEDED TO THE DESIGNATED DROP ZONE AT SCHOOLHOUSE POND IN AVON, MAINE. THE PILOT EXECUTED A LOW-LEVEL RECONNAISSANCE OVERFLIGHT OF THE TARGET AREA TO EVALUATE ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS AND OBSTACLES. WHILE BANKING THE AIRCRAFT BACK TOWARD THE POND TO ALIGN FOR THE STOCKING RUN, CONTROL WAS LOST, INITIATING THE ACCIDENT SEQUENCE.
THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED TREES BEFORE COLLIDING WITH TERRAIN IN A STEEP, NOSE-DOWN ATTITUDE. MULTIPLE RECOVERED TREE BRANCHES EXHIBITED CLEAN CUTS AND DEEP GOUGING CONSISTENT WITH HIGH-VELOCITY PROPELLER ROTATION AT THE TIME OF IMPACT. BOTH WING LEADING EDGES SUSTAINED LOCALIZED DEFORMATION AND IMPACT SIGNATURES DIRECTLY MATCHING TREE-TRUNK AND BRANCH CONTACT.
THE MAIN FUSELAGE AND HEAVY COMPONENTS CAME TO REST DOWN-PATH FROM THE INITIAL STRIKE ZONE. PORTIONS OF THE RIGHT WING TIP ASSEMBLY WERE LOCATED AT THE BASE OF THE INITIAL TREE STRIKE, WITH THE REMAINDER OF THE FRAGMENTED COMPONENTS SITUATED BENEATH THE MAIN WRECKAGE.
AN EXAMINATION OF THE AIRFRAME STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS REVEALED THE FOLLOWING:
• LEFT WING: REMAINED PARTIALLY ORIENTED TO THE FUSELAGE BUT SUSTAINED SLIGHT DISPLACEMENT AND A COMPLETE FRACTURE OF THE AFT SPAR ATTACHMENT POINT.
• RIGHT WING: SUSTAINED CATASTROPHIC STRUCTURAL SEPARATION. THE WING WAS FULLY DISPLACED AND TORN FROM BOTH THE PRIMARY SPAR FITTINGS AND THE EXTERNAL STRUT FITTING, REMAINING ASSOCIATED WITH THE MAIN WRECKAGE SOLELY BY ITS INTERNAL FLIGHT CONTROL CABLES.
• EMPENNAGE: THE EMPENNAGE STRUCTURE, INCLUDING THE VERTICAL STABILIZER, HORIZONTAL STABILIZERS, AND ASSOCIATED ELEVATOR AND RUDDER CONTROL SURFACES, WAS FOUND INTACT AND UNDAMAGED.
• FUSELAGE AND COCKPIT: THE FORWARD FUSELAGE SUSTAINED SEVERE CRUSHING DAMAGE, AND THE COCKPIT CABIN ENCLOSURE WAS DEFORMED INWARD. BOTH THE PRIMARY INSTRUMENT PANEL AND THE DUAL FLIGHT CONTROL YOKES SUFFERED WIDESPREAD IMPACT-FRACTURES. OXYGEN TANKS USED TO OXYGENATE THE FISH CARGO BROKE FREE FROM THE RESTRAINT SYSTEM BEHIND THE PILOT SEATS AND BECAME PROJECTILES DURING THE CRASH SEQUENCE.
• FLOAT ASSEMBLY: THE FLOAT STRUCTURES EXHIBITED SEVERE UPWARD CRUSHING AND LOCALIZED STRUCTURAL TEARING CONCENTRATED AT THE FORWARD TIP OF EACH FLOAT.
AN EXAMINATION OF THE POWERPLANT AND PROPELLER ASSEMBLY REVEALED THE FOLLOWING:
• ENGINE: THE ENGINE MODULE SUSTAINED REARWARD AND LEFTWARD DISPLACEMENT. WHILE THE ENGINE REMAINED SECURED TO ITS STRUCTURAL MOUNT TRUSS, THE TRUSS ASSEMBLY HAD COMPLETELY SEPARATED FROM THE FUSELAGE HARDPOINTS UNDER IMPACT LOADING.
• PROPELLER: THE PROPELLER ASSEMBLY COMPLETELY DETACHED FROM THE ENGINE CRANKSHAFT FLANGE, WHILE THE PROPELLER SPINNER EXHIBITED MINIMAL DEFORMATION. ALL BLADES REMAINED MECHANICALLY SECURED TO THE PROPELLER HUB. EACH BLADE EXHIBITED SEVERE TORSIONAL TWISTING, BENDING, AND LEADING-EDGE GOUGING, CONSISTENT WITH A HIGH-POWER, HIGH-RPM ROTATIONAL STATE DURING INITIAL OBSTRUCTION CONTACT.
AN EXAMINATION OF THE SPECIALIZED CARGO SYSTEM REVEALED THE FOLLOWING:
• LEFT TRANSPORT TANK: FOUND INTACT AND SECURED IN THE FULLY "DUMPED" POSITION.
RIGHT TRANSPORT TANK: DISPLACED FROM ITS STRUCTURAL AIRFRAME MOUNTS BY IMPACT FORCES BUT REMAINED FILLED WITH WATER AND FISH CARGO.
NTSB investigation
The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.