De Havilland DHC-2 MARK 1 N9766Z

Summary

On 1 October 1999 at about 21:45 local time, a De Havilland DHC-2 MARK 1 registered N9766Z was involved in an accident near Port Blakely, Washington, United States. 5 people were on board and 5 had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

1 October 1999 at 21:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Port Blakely, Washington, United States

Coordinates

47.6408, -122.5303

Aircraft

De Havilland DHC-2 MARK 1

Registration

N9766Z

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Unknown

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Seattle → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA00FA001

5 people had minor injuries.

The pilot-in-command's failure to maintain adequate clearance from trees/terrain. Contributing factors were rising terrain and trees.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot-in-command (PIC) departed Lake Union seaplane base with four British Broadcasting Company passengers aboard the DeHavilland DHC-2 'Beaver.' The passengers were engaged in aerial videography of an east/west geological fault line crossing from south Seattle through Blakely Harbor near the south end of Bainbridge Island. An onboard video recorder captured a voice instructing 'Keep as low as you can and slow as you can while we're doing this please... .' The PIC's first pass over the south end of Bainbridge Island was uneventful and the aircraft was maneuvered for a second pass. The PIC reported that approaching the upsloping, tree covered terrain he applied climb flaps and power but shortly thereafter realized the climb rate was less than he expected. He attempted a shallow left turn towards downsloping terrain and then leveled the wings as the aircraft descended into the treetops. The scenario was corroborated by two onboard video recordings. The pilot reported no powerplant or control system malfunction during the accident flight. He also reported encountering a downdraft condition over the tree covered terrain. Winds remained below 12 knots throughout the day at reporting stations near the accident site, and the video recordings showed no wind streaking and only sporadic whitecaps on the surface of Puget Sound during the transit from Seattle to the south end of Bainbridge Island.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.