# NTSB ANC23LA052: Dehavilland DHC-2, N814DW, McCarthy, AK, July 12, 2023 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Class 4 · Limited · Final report - Date: July 11, 2023, 18:30 local (Jul 12, 2023, 02:30 UTC) - Place: McCarthy, AK - Coordinates: 61.442003, -142.89609 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=61.4420&lon=-142.8961&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Landing: Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed - Report: Approved by Office Director - Investigation class: Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 192644 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC23LA052 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/192644/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=192644 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC23LA052 ## Probable cause A failure of the right brake caliper bolts during landing, which resulted in a runway excursion and subsequent impact with terrain. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Landing gear system: landing gear brakes system](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023240): Aircraft › Aircraft systems · Failure; cases with it: [Dehavilland DHC-2, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023240/cases.md?model=2808001), [All aircraft, 92 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023240/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Landing: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230); cases with it: [Dehavilland DHC-2, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md?model=2808001), [All aircraft, 4,585 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md) - [Landing: Runway excursion](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/300); cases with it: [Dehavilland DHC-2, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/300/sequence.md?model=2808001), [All aircraft, 3,643 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/300/sequence.md) - [Landing: Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330) (defining event); cases with it: [Dehavilland DHC-2, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330/sequence.md?model=2808001), [All aircraft, 994 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot reported that during the landing roll on a gravel-covered airstrip, the airplane veered left, went through an embankment, and came to rest upright. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed the right brake caliper bolts failed in overload. The lower bolt was broken in half, the upper bolt was not located, and the brake caliper was located in brush. Given that the airplane is routinely operated from rough, uneven, gravel-covered, off airport sites, it is likely that the brake caliper and bolts sustained impact damage, resulting in the failure of the attachment hardware. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N814DW](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N814DW), registered now, S/N 34, built 1949 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: DEHAVILLAND DHC-2 - Registry model: [Dehavilland DHC-2](https://openairdocs.org/model/dehavilland-dhc-2) (registry code 2808001) (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: 34 - Year built: 1949 - Airframe hours: 18186 - Engines: Pratt & Whitney R-985-AN-14B 450 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Part 135 - Operator: Wrangell Mountain Air Inc - Registered owner: Wrangell Mountain Air Inc - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, May 30, 2023, 75 hours before - Departed: PAMX, McCarthy, AK - Destination: Same as departure - Flight plan: Company VFR ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 73; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, with waivers/limitations; seat: left; restraint: 4-point; flight hours: 9,379 total, 1,009 in this make and model, 9,361 as pilot in command, 91 in the last 90 days, 86 in the last 30 days, 5 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 55 °F, dew point 46 °F - Altimeter: 29.95 inHg - Observed at: PAGK, 85 nm away - METAR: PAGK 111753Z AUTO VRB03KT 10SM CLR 13/08 A2995 RMK AO2 SLP141 T01330078 10133 20106 58001 TSNO ## 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 20230711008779A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20230711008779A), Jul 11, 2023: Dehavilland DHC-2, Mccarthy, AK, Substantial damage. On July 11, 2023 at approximately 1830 AKDT a DHC-2 beaver operating under FAR part 135 on demand took off from Mccarthy 15Z and flew about 20 minutes and… ## Docket (2 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on May 15, 2024, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=192644. 13.4 MB in all. - Pilot/operator aircraft accident report, NTSB form 6120.1 (item 1, PDF, 11 pages, 12.4 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=16288840&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=NTSB%20Form%206120_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Photos (item 2, PDF, 3 pages, 1.0 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=16819844&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Photos-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.