ANC02LA074

The pilot reported that during takeoff on a sandbar, the airplane lifted off prematurely, failed to climb, and started to descend. Due to the shape of the sandbar, after the initial liftoff the airplane's flight path was partially over the river. As the airplane descended, its right main wheel entered the water, and the airplane nosed over.

On July 11, 2002, about 1700 Alaska daylight time, a tundra tire-equipped Cessna U206F airplane, N696TK, sustained substantial damage when it collided with water during takeoff on from a sandbar in the Nushagak River, about 20 miles north of Koliganek, Alaska. The airplane was being operated by Tikchik Narrows Lodge, Inc., as a visual flight rules (VFR) business flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The commercial pilot and the three passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and company flight following procedures were in effect. The flight's intended destination was the airstrip at the Tikchik Narrows Lodge, about 70 miles northwest of Koliganek.

During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on July 11, the owner of Tikchik Narrows Lodge said the pilot told him that during takeoff, the airplane lifted off the sandbar too soon. The pilot said the airplane stopped climbing and started to descend. He said due to the shape of the sandbar, the airplane was partially over the river when it started to descend, and its right main wheel entered the river. He said the airplane was pulled to the right into the river, and nosed over.

The operator said there were no known mechanical anomalies with the airplane prior to the accident. The airplane sustained wing spar damage during the accident.