ASN Aircraft accident de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter N3125N Wainwright Airport, AK (AIN)
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Status:Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Date:Saturday 2 September 2006
Time:12:45
Type:Silhouette image of generic DHC3 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different
de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter
Operator:Alaska Air Taxi
Registration: N3125N
MSN: 394
First flight: 1960
Total airframe hrs:14786
Crew:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Passengers:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 0
Total:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage: Substantial
Aircraft fate: Repaired
Location:Wainwright Airport, AK (AIN) (   United States of America)
Phase: Landing (LDG)
Nature:Cargo
Departure airport:Barrow-Wiley Post/Will Rogers Memorial Airport, AK (BRW/PABR), United States of America
Destination airport:Wainwright Airport, AK (AIN/PAWI), United States of America
Narrative:
A wheel-equipped de Havilland Canada 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, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country non-scheduled cargo flight, when the accident occurred. 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 Barrow-Wiley Post/Will Rogers Memorial Airport, Alaska, about 12:00.

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.

Probable Cause:

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."

Accident investigation:

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Investigating agency: NTSB
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 235 days (8 months)
Accident number: ANC06LA134
Download report: Summary report

Classification:
Runway excursion (veer-off)

Sources:
» NTSB


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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 Barrow-Wiley Post/Will Rogers Memorial Airport, AK to Wainwright Airport, AK as the crow flies is 136 km (85 miles).

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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