Cessna 207 N9620M

Summary

On 3 July 2017 at about 18:32 local time, a Cessna 207 registered N9620M, operated by Alaska Air Taxi LLC, was involved in an accident near Hope, Alaska, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 July 2017 at 18:32

Classification

Accident

Location

Hope, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

60.4561, -150.0294

Aircraft

Cessna 207

Registration

N9620M

Category

Airplane

Year built

1981

Engines

1

Operator

Alaska Air Taxi LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Seldovia → Anchorage

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA17CA388

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s inadvertent flight into instrument meteorological conditions and subsequent controlled flight into terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot, he was flying the second airplane in a flight of two about 1 mile behind the lead airplane. The lead airplane pilot reported to him, via the airplane's radio, that he had encountered decreasing visibility and that he was making a 180° left turn to exit the area. The pilot recalled that, after losing sight of the lead airplane, he made a shallow climbing right turn and noticed that the terrain was rising. He recalled that he entered the clouds for a few seconds and "at that moment I ran into the trees which I never saw coming." The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that the temperature was 60°F with 8 miles visibility and 1,500-ft ceilings. The nearest METAR was about 1 mile away and reported that the temperature was 54°F, dew point was 52°F, visibility was 8 statute miles with light rain, and ceiling was broken at 500 ft and overcast at 1,500 ft.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.