ASN Aircraft accident de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300 N383EX Hyannis-Barnstable Airport, MA (HYA)
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Status:Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Date:Sunday 17 June 1979
Time:22:48
Type:Silhouette image of generic DHC6 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300
Operator:Air New England
Registration: N383EX
MSN: 245
First flight: 1969
Total airframe hrs:17058
Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-27
Crew:Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2
Passengers:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 8
Total:Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 10
Aircraft damage: Damaged beyond repair
Location:2,8 km (1.8 mls) NE of Hyannis-Barnstable Airport, MA (HYA) (   United States of America)
Phase: Approach (APR)
Nature:Domestic Scheduled Passenger
Departure airport:New York-La Guardia Airport, NY (LGA/KLGA), United States of America
Destination airport:Hyannis-Barnstable Airport, MA (HYA/KHYA), United States of America
Flightnumber: 248
Narrative:
The flight crew reported for duty at 08:45 in the morning for 12 legs out of Hyannis, Massachusetts, USA. They arrived back at Hyannis at 18:31. The crew then learned they had to fly two additional flights of two legs each (Hyannis-New Bedford-New York v.v.) The captain was visibly upset about this. On the return flight from New York-LaGuardia the crew decided to skip New Bedford because of poor weather there. At 21:32 the flight departed LaGuardia for Hyannis. At 22.39 the crew were given Hyannis weather, which included: indefinite ceiling of 200 feet, sky obscured, visibility 3/4 mile in fog, wind 210 degrees at 10 knots. Five minutes later the aircraft was vectored for a runway 24 ILS approach. The aircraft descended below the glidepath and crashed into a heavily wooded area.

Probable Cause:

PROBABLE CAUSE: "The failure of the flight crew to recognize and react in a timely manner to the gross deviation from acceptable approach parameters, resulting in a continuation of the descent well below the decision height during a precision approach without visual contact with the runway environment.
Although the Board was unable to determine conclusively the reason for the failure to recognize and react to the gross deviation, it is believed that the degraded physiological condition of the captain seriously impaired his performance. Also, the lack of adequate crew coordination practices and procedures contributed to the first officer's failure to detect and react to the situation in a timely manner."

Accident investigation:

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Investigating agency: NTSB
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 200 days (7 months)
Accident number: NTSB/AAR-80-01
Download report: Final report

Classification:
Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) - Ground

Sources:
» Flight International 08 March 1980 (732)
» NTSB-AAR-80-1


Follow-up / safety actions

NTSB issued 2 Safety Recommendations

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Photos

photo of DHC-6-Twin-Otter-300-N383EX
photo of DHC-6-Twin-Otter-300-N383EX
accident date: 17-06-1979
type: de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300
registration: N383EX
 

Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path.
Distance from New York-La Guardia Airport, NY to Hyannis-Barnstable Airport, MA as the crow flies is 314 km (196 miles).
Accident location: Exact; as reported in the official accident report.

This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.
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