Cessna 172N N5290J

Summary

On 5 February 2013 at about 20:12 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N5290J was involved in an accident near Kalskag, Alaska, United States. 3 people were on board and one was seriously injured, 2 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

5 February 2013 at 20:12

Classification

Accident

Location

Kalskag, Alaska, United States

Nearest airport

Kalskag (PALG)

Coordinates

61.5364, -160.3414

Aircraft

Cessna 172N

Registration

N5290J

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Business

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Kalskag → Aniak

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC13LA021

1 person was seriously injured.

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.

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

Read the full 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.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.