ANC02LA013

The pilot and a passenger were departing a rural airport on a dark winter night. The airplane was operating at or near its maximum gross weight. The pilot said the airplane accelerated and took off normally, but didn't seem to want to climb. He said he didn't look at the engine tachometer, but the engine "note" sounded lower than normal. He turned immediately after departure to follow lower terrain, and to avoid trees. He inadvertently turned towards rising terrain, and collided with trees. The passenger said he helped the pilot load the airplane, and noted that significant amounts of ice and frost remained on the airframe prior to takeoff. The passenger said the engine seemed to be running fine until they collided with trees.

On February 5, 2002, about 1930 Alaska standard time, a wheel-equipped Cessna 150 airplane, N3829J, sustained substantial damage when it collided with trees during takeoff from the Talkeetna Airport, Talkeetna, Alaska. The commercial pilot/owner of the airplane received minor injuries; the sole passenger was seriously injured. The personal, 14 CFR Part 91 flight, was en route to Merrill Field, Anchorage, Alaska. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a VFR flight plan was filed, but not activated.

The NTSB investigator-in-charge (IIC) had two telephone conversations with the pilot, one on February 5, about 2025, and one on February 11. During these conversations, the pilot related he and the passenger went to the airplane and he did a preflight inspection. He removed the wing covers, and, with the assistance of the passenger, brushed the snow from most of the airplane. The pilot said some snow and possibly some ice remained on the top of the engine cowling and the cabin roof, where the wing covers did not meet. He calculated the airplane to be at or near its maximum gross weight, and noted the gas tanks were approximately 3/4 full, or about two inches down from the rim. He said there was a direct crosswind across the 18/36 oriented runway, that was about "a half a sock," or about 10 knots, and he elected to back-taxi to the north, and depart on runway 18. He indicated he checked the magnetos and carburetor heat during the taxi, and that the takeoff roll was "normal," and took about 1,000 feet. He said he didn't recall looking at the engine instruments during the takeoff, but said he does not believe there was a problem with the engine. Once airborne, the pilot related that the airplane just didn't seem to want to climb. He said he thought he had reached the nearby Susitna River, and began a turn away from trees and what he thought was toward lower terrain. Instead, he said, he had not yet reached the river, and the turn he made actually took him towards higher terrain. The airplane subsequently collided with spruce trees and terrain, coming to rest inverted. He and the passenger were able to get out of the cabin without assistance. When asked by the NTSB IIC why he thought the airplane would not climb, and if he thought it was a mechanical problem, the pilot said he didn't know for sure, that possibly it was wind shear, but he didn't think it was a problem with the engine. He said if he had turned the other direction, away from the rising terrain, that he would not have crashed.

In the pilot's written statement to the NTSB, dated February 19, the pilot wrote, in part: "I took off and became airborne in a normal distance but then noticed the airplane was failing to climb. The engine note sounded lower than normal, I made sure the throttle was all the way in, gained best angle of climb airspeed, and then diverted to the left to follow the swamp instead of trying to clear the trees off the end of 18. ...I saw spruce trees ahead and tried to climb. I heard the stall horn but maintained control until the left wing hit a tree. The plane then banked left and went down in the trees." Also in his written report to the NTSB, under the heading, "Recommendation How Could This Accident Been Prevented)" the pilot wrote: "Avoid flying single engine aircraft on completely dark nights-or allow extra safety margins if you do fly at night."

The NTSB IIC spoke with the passenger on February 8. The passenger said he had just met the pilot while the pilot was getting gas for his automobile at a roadside gas station. He asked the pilot for a ride to Anchorage, and the pilot said he was going to the airport to fly to Anchorage, and he could come along if he wished. The passenger accepted. The passenger related that during the pilot's preflight inspection, he helped clean the airplane of snow. He said that there was quite a bit of ice, between 1/2 and 1.5 inches, remaining on the top of the engine cowling, and atop the fuselage from the cabin windows, up to, but not including, the horizontal stabilizer. He said the engine didn't seem to be having any problems, and the takeoff seemed normal. He said he remembers the pilot telling him they had to turn to miss some trees, and then colliding with the trees. The passenger said he received a blow to the head, and a broken collar bone.

An automated weather observation taken at the Talkeetna Airport on February 5, at 1924 local, reported the wind conditions as from 355 degrees magnetic at 5 knots, 10 miles visibility, few clouds at 2,800 feet, broken clouds at 6,500 feet, overcast at 8,500 feet, temperature, 28 F, dew point, 19 F.