Cessna 206 N35606

Summary

On 7 July 2002 at about 23:00 local time, a Cessna 206 registered N35606, operated by Alaska West Air, Inc., was involved in an accident near Karluk, Alaska, United States. One person was on board and one 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

7 July 2002 at 23:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Karluk, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

57.5672, -154.4006

Aircraft

Cessna 206

Registration

N35606

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Alaska West Air, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Positioning

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Larson Bay → Karluk

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC02LA073

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's inadvertent water landing on amphibious floats with the wheels extended, which resulted in the airplane nosing over. A factor associated with the accident was the pilot's diverted attention during departure.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The certificated commercial pilot was landing an amphibious float-equipped airplane on a saltwater lagoon. The pilot reported that after departing from a gravel-covered airstrip, en route to the salt-water lagoon, his attention was temporarily distracted while correcting a minor flap retraction problem. The pilot thought he had placed the landing gear retraction handle in the "up" position, in preparation for a water landing at his destination, but failed to observe 4 blue lights, indicating that wheels were up for a water landing. During touchdown in the lagoon, as the keels of the floats made contact with the water, the airplane suddenly pitched forward, and nosed over. The pilot said that as he exited the sinking airplane, he noticed that the wheels were in the "down" position. Due to the saltwater emersion damage, the landing gear retract/extension system could not be tested. The director of operations for the operator reported that when he interviewed the pilot shortly after the accident, the pilot reported that after departing from the airstrip, his attention was distracted during the wing flap anomaly, and that he just forgot to retract the wheels.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.