Pilot Debrief

CESSNA 172N near Kalskag, AK — 2013-02-05

Final reportANC13LA021
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Date
2013-02-05
Location
Kalskag, AK, USA
Airport
PALG
Aircraft
CESSNA 172N
Registration
N5290J
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
Serious
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Takeoff roll

Probable cause

The pilot’s decision to take off into deteriorating weather conditions, which resulted in a loss of visual reference and the subsequent controlled flight into terrain. Contributing to the severity of the rear seat passenger’s injuries was the incorrect installation of the rear seat belts.

NTSB narrative

The noninstrument-rated private pilot was departing on the second leg of a cross-country flight to pick up passengers from an outlying airport and return them to their home airport. The pilot said that, on the inbound flight, the weather reporting station at the destination airport was reporting visual flight rules conditions with 10 statute miles (sm) visibility, but that, as he approached the airport, the visibility had reduced to about 2 sm. After landing and then loading the passengers, the flight took off. He reported that he climbed the airplane to about 300 feet above the ground and that he could still see the river adjacent to the airport but that was all he could remember until impact. The airplane came to rest inverted on the frozen river. One witness and one of the passengers stated that the weather had been deteriorating. The witness stated that, around the time of the airplane's departure, the visibility was poor in snow and fog. The rear seat passenger was ejected from the airplane during the accident sequence. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the right, rear seat belt floor attachment had separated from its track. Examination of the rear seat belts revealed that the belts had not been installed in accordance with the supplemental type certificate (STC) for the rear seat. The improper installation of the right, rear seat belt allowed it to fully separate from the floor attachment point and the seat during the accident. Since the accident, the manufacturer holding the STC has issued a mandatory service bulletin to inspect and correct any improperly installed components.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
VFR into IMC
First missed decision gate
Pilot did not check weather conditions before departure from Kalskag.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • ADS-B / radar
  • 3 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents3

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