# NTSB ANC06LA134: de Havilland DHC-3, N3125N, Wainwright, AK, September 2, 2006 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: September 2, 2006, 12:45 local (20:45 UTC) - Place: Wainwright, AK - Coordinates: 70.638053, -159.99472 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=70.6381&lon=-159.9947&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report April 25, 2007 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: FAA-AL-FAI FSDO 01 - NTSB case key (mKey): 64536 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC06LA134 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/64536/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC06LA134 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to adequately compensate for wind conditions during the landing roll, which resulted in a loss of control, and subsequent collision with a ditch when the airplane departed the runway. A factor contributing to the accident was a crosswind. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - on ground/water, landing - roll - weather condition - crosswind (contributing factor) - compensation for wind conditions - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, landing - roll - terrain condition - ditch ## Analysis The airline transport certificated pilot was landing a wheel-equipped airplane on runway 23, during a Title 14, CFR Part 135, cargo flight. The pilot indicated that the wind at the airport was from 180 degrees. He described the wind strength as 10 knots or greater, indicated by streaks of white foam on many nearby lakes, with the streaks of foam appearing perpendicular to the runway. During the landing roll, the airplane suddenly veered to the left. The pilot applied right brake and right rudder, but the airplane departed off the left side of the runway, rolled down an embankment, and collided with a ditch. The airplane received structural damage to left main landing gear assembly, the left aileron, and the fuselage. In the Recommendation '(How could this accident have been prevented?)' portion of the NTSB accident report, the pilot indicated that he should not have landed with the existing crosswind. ## Factual narrative On September 2, 2006, about 1245 Alaska daylight time, a wheel-equipped de Havilland DHC-3 airplane, N3125N, sustained substantial damage when it departed the runway and collided with a ditch during the landing roll at the Wainwright Airport, Wainwright, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country non-scheduled cargo flight under Title 14, CFR Part 135, when the accident occurred. The airplane was operated by Alaska Air Taxi, LLC., Anchorage, Alaska. The airline transport certificated pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a VFR flight plan was filed. The flight originated at the Wiley Post/Will Rogers Memorial Airport, Barrow, Alaska, about 1200. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), on September 2, the pilot reported that he was landing on runway 23 at Wainwright. The gravel surface runway is 4,494 feet long, and 90 feet wide. The pilot said that during the landing roll, the airplane suddenly veered to the left. He applied right brake and right rudder, but the airplane departed off the left side of the runway, rolled down an embankment, and collided with a ditch. The left main landing gear assembly was fractured and displaced aft, against the fuselage. The propeller, engine, and the left wingtip struck the ground. On September 20, the chief pilot for the operator reported that after delays in getting recovery equipment to Wainwright, the airplane was recovered and disassembled for removal to Anchorage. The chief pilot indicated that the left aileron received structural damage, and the fuselage firewall had buckling and structural damage. In the Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1) submitted by the pilot, the pilot indicated that the wind at the airport was from 180 degrees. He described the wind strength as 10 knots or greater, indicated by streaks of white foam on many nearby lakes, with the streaks of foam appearing perpendicular to the runway. In the Recommendation '(How could this accident have been prevented?)' portion of the NTSB accident report, the pilot stated: "I should not have landed at Wainwright that day with that crosswind condition. Having significant experience in that aircraft and over 1,200 hours in tailwheel aircraft, I felt that I could handle the crosswind situation." ## Aircraft - Registration: [N3125N](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N3125N), registered now, S/N 394, built 1960 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: de Havilland DHC-3 - Registry model: [Dehavilland DHC-3](https://openairdocs.org/model/dehavilland-dhc-3) (registry code 2800202) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney R1340 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-r1340-series) (registry code 52016, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 394 - Airframe hours: 14786 - Engines: PZL AW-2-30 1000 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Part 135 - Registered owner: Alaska Air Taxi, LLC - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: 100 hour, August 1, 2006, 42 hours before - Departed: PABR, Barrow, AK - Destination: PAWI, Wainwright, AK - Flight plan: VFR - Airport: PAWI, Wainwright, runway 23, 4,494 × 90 ft, gravel ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 27; injuries: none; commercial, airline transport; airplane ratings: single-engine sea, single-engine land, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, without waivers/limitations; last flight review June 1, 2006; seat: left; flight hours: 4,200 total, 250 in this make and model, 4,100 as pilot in command, 280 in the last 90 days, 100 in the last 30 days, 5 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 180° at 10 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 50 °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 20060902018599A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20060902018599A), Sep 2, 2006: Dhav DHC3, Wainwright, AK, Minor damage. (-23) Tailwheel locked in unsafe position for landing. PIC failed to recognize condition too late to take corrective action. Aircraft left the runway causing… ## Other investigations on N3125N (4) 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 ANC15LA037](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC15LA037), Jun 4, 2015: Dehavilland DHC-3T (N3125N), Skwentna, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The flutter failure of the right elevator servo tab due to the improper fabrication of the servo tab and maintenance personnel’s subsequent failure to detect anomalies with the servo tab. - [NTSB ANC14LA035](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC14LA035), May 30, 2014: Dehavilland DHC-3T (N3125N), Homer, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The flutter failure of the right elevator servo tab due to the improper fabrication of the servo tab and maintenance personnel’s subsequent failure to detect anomalies with the servo tab. - [NTSB ANC99LA057](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC99LA057), Apr 27, 1999: de Havilland DHC-3 (N3125N), Healy, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's selection of an unsafe/hazardous area for landing. Factors in the accident were the presence of a tail wind, the pilot's inadequate evaluation of the wind conditions, and a narrow… - [NTSB ANC88LA066](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC88LA066), Jun 2, 1988: De Havilland DHC-3 (N3125N), Eagle, AK, substantial damage 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.