# NTSB ANC02LA123: de Havilland DHC-2, N144Q, Bethel, AK, September 20, 2002 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: September 20, 2002, 08:15 local (16:15 UTC) - Place: Bethel, AK - Coordinates: 60.766666, -161.84111 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=60.7667&lon=-161.8411&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Initial climb](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/350) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report July 23, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 55765 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC02LA123 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/55765/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=55765 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC02LA123 ## Probable cause The instructor pilot's inadequate preflight by his failure to remove all frost from the wings prior to takeoff, which resulted in an inadvertent stall and in-flight collision with terrain. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - in flight, takeoff - initial climb - ice/frost removal from aircraft - inadequate, pilot in command(cfi) (cause) - aircraft preflight - inadequate, pilot in command(cfi) (cause) - airspeed - inadequate, pilot in command(cfi) (cause) - stall - inadvertent - In flight collision with terrain/water, descent - uncontrolled - terrain condition - tundra ## Analysis The certificated flight instructor, seated in the right seat, reported that he was providing flight instruction/familiarization training a commercial pilot, seated in the left seat, in a float-equipped airplane. The instructor added that the accident flight was the first flight of the day. He said that just after takeoff, as the airplane climbed to about 50 feet above the water, the airplane began to buffet, and the right wing dropped. The airplane descended and subsequently struck an area of tundra-covered marshy terrain. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wings, fuselage, and empennage. The instructor reported that a postaccident inspection of the airplane revealed an accumulation of frost on the wings. ## Factual narrative On September 20, 2002, about 0815 Alaska daylight time, a float-equipped de Havilland DHC-2 airplane, N144Q, sustained substantial damage during an in-flight collision with tundra-covered terrain during takeoff from a remote lake, located about 1 mile north of Bethel, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) local area instructional flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The airplane was being operated by Ptarmigan Air, Anchorage, Alaska. The first pilot, an airline transport certificated pilot/certificated flight instructor, seated in the right seat, and the second pilot, a commercial certificated pilot, seated in the left seat, were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and VFR company flight following procedures were in effect. The flight originated at the accident lake, about 0810. During a telephone conversation with a National Transportation Safety Board investigator on September 20, the first pilot reported that he was providing flight instruction/familiarization training to the second pilot. The first pilot said that just after takeoff, as the airplane climbed to about 50 feet above the water, the airplane began to buffet, and the right wing dropped. The airplane descended and subsequently struck an area of tundra-covered marshy terrain. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wings, fuselage, and empennage. The first pilot reported that the accident flight was the first flight of the day. He added that a postaccident inspection of the airplane revealed an accumulation of frost on the wings. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N144Q](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N144Q), registered now, S/N 1465, built 1961 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: de Havilland DHC-2 - Registry model: [Dehavilland BEAVER DHC-2 MK.1](https://openairdocs.org/model/dehavilland-beaver-dhc-2-mk-1) (registry code 2800102) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney R-985 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-r-985-series) (registry code 52008, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 1465 - Airframe hours: 7850.3 - Engines: Pratt & Whitney R-985 450 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Instructional, Part 91 - Operator: Ptarmigan Air, doing business as Ptarmigan Air - Registered owner: Sheryl Williams - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: 100 hour, September 19, 2002, 0 hours before - Departed: BET, Bethel, AK - Destination: BET, Bethel, AK - Flight plan: Company VFR ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 40; injuries: none; airline transport, flight instructor; airplane ratings: single-engine sea, multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review June 3, 2002; seat: right; flight hours: 9,600 total, 3,000 in this make and model, 9,600 as pilot in command, 360 in the last 90 days, 100 in the last 30 days, 0 in the last 24 hours - Pilot; age 26; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 3, expired; seat: left ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Dawn - Wind: calm - Visibility: 20 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 28 °F ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20020920024539A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020920024539A), Sep 20, 2002: Dhav DHC2MK1, Bethel, AK, Substantial damage. (-23) According to the pilot, after takeoff the aircraft got to an altitude of 50 feet, stalled and crashed. The pilot stated that before beginning the flight,… ## Other investigations on N144Q (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB ANC95LA132](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC95LA132), Aug 8, 1995: de Havilland DHC-2 (N144Q), Iliamna, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: THE PILOT'S ABRUPT (IMPROPER) USE OF THE THROTTLE. ## Docket (2 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on March 18, 2022, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=55765. 822 KB in all. - Pilot-operator aircraft accident report NTSB form 61201 (item 1, PDF, 10 pages, 782 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=13388090&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Pilot-Operator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report%20NTSB%20Form%2061201-Master-Rel.pdf - FAA written statement (item 2, PDF, 1 page, 41 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=13387997&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=FAA%20Written%20Statement-Master-Rel.pdf From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.