Piper PA 32R N8209C

Summary

On 14 December 2017 at about 22:23 local time, a Piper PA 32R registered N8209C, operated by Paklook AIR, was involved in an accident near Kwigillingok, Alaska, United States. 3 people were 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

14 December 2017 at 22:23

Classification

Accident

Location

Kwigillingok, Alaska, United States

Nearest airport

Kwigillingok (GGV)

Coordinates

59.8756, -163.1681

Aircraft

Piper PA 32R

Registration

N8209C

Category

Airplane

Year built

1975

Engines

1

Operator

Paklook AIR

Operating rule

Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bethel → Kwigillingok

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA18CA088

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s decision to land with the sun in his eyes, which resulted in a short landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot, he landed on runway 15 instead of runway 33 because he did not want to make a 180° turn and taxi back on the runway. He reported that, when he turned to final, the sun was in his eyes and the airplane landed short. During landing, the right main landing gear collided with "deep snow" during the flare, and the airplane veered to the right and collided with a snow berm. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right-wing spar, horizontal stabilizer and the fuselage. The pilot reported that this accident could have been prevented if he had used runway 33 and not had the sun in his eyes during landing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.