- Date
- July 9, 2003, 09:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Kotzebue, AK
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 2 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N410GVCessna 208B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 25, 2003
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- Parties
- FAA Anchorage FSDO-03
- FAA report
- 20030709036369A
- Case key
- 57463
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The airplane encountered unforecast turbulence, which resulted in serious injury to the pilot.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The operator reported that the captain left the cockpit while in cruise flight to inspect the cargo. While he was inspecting the cargo, the airplane encountered unforecast turbulence, and the captain fell, breaking his ankle. The first officer returned the airplane to the departure airport. The airplane was not damaged.
Factual narrative
On July 9, 2003, about 0900 Alaska daylight time, the captain of a Cessna 208B airplane, N410GV, was seriously injured when the airplane encountered turbulence during normal cruise flight, about 50 miles northwest of Kotzebue, Alaska. There was no damage to the airplane, which was being operated by Hageland Aviation Services Inc., Anchorage, Alaska, as a scheduled visual flight rules (VFR) passenger/cargo flight under Title 14, CFR Part 135 when the accident occurred. The first officer and the sole passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a company VFR flight plan was filed. The flight departed Kotzebue about 0830, and was bound for Point Hope, Alaska.
During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on July 9, the director of operations for the operator said that about 30 minutes after the airplane departed Kotzebue, the captain went to check the cargo, leaving the first officer to fly the airplane. He said while the pilot was out of his seat, the airplane encountered unforecast turbulence, and the captain fell, breaking his ankle. He said the first officer returned the flight to Kotzebue to seek medical attention for the captain.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N410GV
- Reported as
- Cessna 208B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 208B0632
- Airframe hours
- 8,200
- Engine
- Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-114A, 675 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Hageland Aviation Services Inc, doing business as Hageland Aviation Services, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Gussic Ventures, LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- AAIP · July 16, 2003
- Departed
- PAQT · Kotzebue, AK
- Destination
- PAPO · Point Hope, AK
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 21
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- April 19, 2003
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 800 total · 350 in this make and model · 165 in the last 90 days · 55 in the last 30 days
- Role
- Co-pilot
- Age
- 43
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Last flight review
- April 29, 2003
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 4,200 total · 1,200 in this make and model · 3,500 as pilot in command · 150 in the last 90 days · 50 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 46 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.