# NTSB WPR11LA276: Dehavilland Beaver DHC-2 MK.3, N260HC, Jefferson, OR, June 17, 2011 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: June 17, 2011, 16:40 local (23:40 UTC) - Place: Jefferson, OR - Coordinates: 44.769721, -122.96833 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.7697&lon=-122.9683&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Landing-flare/touchdown: Abnormal runway contact](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/090) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report October 9, 2014 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Western Pacific Region - Parties: Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 80845 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=WPR11LA276 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/80845/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=80845 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR11LA276 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain airplane control while on short final after experiencing a downdraft, which resulted in a subsequent hard landing. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Performance/control parameters: descent/approach/glide path](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062040): Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Not attained/maintained (probable cause); cases with it: [All aircraft, 809 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062040/cases.md) - [Use of equip/info: aircraft control](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040): Personnel issues › Task performance · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [All aircraft, 9,295 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040/cases.md) - [Wind: downdraft](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03034035): Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena · Effect on operation (probable cause); cases with it: [All aircraft, 178 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03034035/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Landing-flare/touchdown: Abnormal runway contact](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/090) (defining event); cases with it: [All aircraft, 1,506 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/090/sequence.md) - [Landing: Hard landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/092); cases with it: [All aircraft, 2,102 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/092/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot reported that, while on short final for landing at an airstrip located atop a plateau, the airplane experienced a thermal lift then a downdraft, which caused the airplane to descend. The pilot added power; however, insufficient altitude existed to arrest the sink rate, and the airplane subsequently landed hard. One of the wings and the pontoon/landing gear sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported no preimpact malfunctions or failures with the airplane or engine that would have precluded normal operation. ## Factual narrative On June 17, 2011, about 1640 Pacific daylight time, a DeHavilland Beaver DHC-2 MK 3, N260HC, landed hard on the runway at a private airstrip near Jefferson, Oregon. The pilot/owner operated the airplane under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a business flight. The pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The airplane sustained substantial damage to one wing and the pontoon/landing gear. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local area flight, and no flight plan had been filed.The pilot reported to the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge (IIC), that the runway sits on a plateau. He stated that his approach was normal, but on short final, the airplane experienced a thermal lift then a downdraft, which dropped the airplane. He added power, however, there was not sufficient time to arrest the sink rate before the airplane landed hard. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane or engine that would have precluded normal operation. ## Aircraft - Registration: N260HC (not matched to a registry record) - Reported make and model: DEHAVILLAND BEAVER DHC-2 MK.3 - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 1665-TB37 - Airframe hours: 11657 - Engines: P&W CANADA PT6A-34 750 horsepower turbo prop - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Business, Part 91 - Operator: William Ames Curtright - Registered owner: William Ames Curtright - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, September 10, 2010, 25 hours before - Departed: SLE, Salem, OR - Destination: 21OG, Jefferson, OR - Airport: 21OG, Ames Airport, runway 14, 1,800 × 40 ft, asphalt - Equipment: Stall warning system ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 67; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land, single-engine sea; medical: class 3, with waivers/limitations; last flight review September 12, 2010; seat: left; flight hours: 2,132 total, 1,000 in this make and model, 2,032 as pilot in command, 25 in the last 90 days, 9 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 75 °F, dew point 41 °F - Altimeter: 29.94 inHg - Observed at: SLE, 12 nm away ## 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 20110617011759A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20110617011759A), Jun 17, 2011: Dehavilland BEAVER DHC-2 MK.3, Turner, OR, Substantial damage. Making approach to runway located on top of hill approx. 1700 feet long. Encountered low level wind shear with high sink rate. Contacted ground short of… ## Docket (1 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 13, 2014, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=80845. 583 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 583 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40414958&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.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.