Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska Preliminary Report by NTSB on Unalaska Crash

NTSB: Pilot had just 101 hours at controls of plane model that crashed in Unalaska

101 and 147 hours in the same plane... hardly the level of expertise expected IMO...

https://www.ktuu.com/content/news/F...into-Unalaska-plane-crash-565011082.html

photo courtesy Randy Batten
By Sean Maguire | Posted: Fri 3:02 PM, Nov 15, 2019 | Updated: Fri 8:03 PM, Nov 15, 2019

ANCHORAGE (KTUU) - On Friday, the National Transportation Safety Board released a preliminary report into a plane crash in Unalaska that left one person dead, describing that the pilot overshot the runway after touching down around 1,000 feet along the 4,500-foot-long runway.

According to the report, the pilot of the PenAir flight had 20,000 total flight hours but only 101 hours at the controls of a Saab 2000. The plane’s first officer had 1,446 total flight hours, of which 147 were in a Saab 2000.

Clint Johnson, chief of the regional NTSB office, said that federal investigators will continue looking into level of the pilot's training, the operations of airline and the weather conditions at the time of the crash before releasing a final report.

Just before the Oct. 17 crash, the pilot abandoned their first attempted landing “because they were not stabilized.” Gusty winds were also reported in the area, the report detailed.

On the second attempted landing, the plane touched down at 142 knots (163 mph) before braking hard. One of the left tires was found by investigators to be deflated “with an area that had worn entirely through the tire.”

The plane overran the runway before crashing into a fence, crossing a ditch, hitting a rock, running over a roadway and coming to rest on a small rock wall.

Forty-two passengers and crew were onboard the flight during the crash. One person was killed and several others suffered minor and major injuries.

The NTSB report into the fatal crash describes that upon inspection, all the seats inside the plane “were intact and secure to the floor,” except for 4A. Johnson said he understands that the passenger who died in the crash was sitting in the unsecured seat.

Investigators also found a propeller blade loosely stuck in the outside of the Saab 2000. Inside the plane, another propeller blade was found.

The damage to the cabin was contained over three rows between seat 3A and seat 6A. An overhead compartment was detached from the ceiling, a window frame had come loose and “various brackets and debris [were] hanging down into the seats or laying on the floor.”

Ravn Air Group, the company that owns and operates PenAir, decided to stop using Saab 2000 planes to fly to Unalaska until a full investigation into the crash is complete. Instead, the airline is using Dash-8 aircraft to service Unalaska using the same schedule as PenAir had prior to the crash.

On Friday, Alaska Airlines announced that it will not market flights to Unalaska being run by Ravn Air through May.

“We respect and support that decision and are presently conducting our own assessment. It could be several months before that process is complete,” read a blog post from Alaska Airlines. “Accordingly, all flights marketed by Alaska Airlines to and from Dutch Harbor through May 31, 2020 have been canceled.”

According to Alaska Airlines, everyone who booked a flight through the airline will be automatically rebooked on a Ravn Air flight.

More information. The comments section is disturbing.

http://www.kathrynsreport.com/2019/10/saab-2000-n686pa-accident-occurred.html

Yup, that is what several pilots have said...

Comments section:

9 comments:
Anonymous said...
ASN contains METAR info showing winds from 300 at 21 gusting to 27, and says the aircraft landed on runway 13. It's very curious that a professional crew would land downwind in such a situation.

https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20191017-0

Date: Thursday 17 October 2019
Time: 17:40

A Saab 2000, registered N686PA, was substantially damaged when it experienced a runway excursion after landing on runway 13 at Unalaska Airport, Alaska.

01:56 UTC / 17:56 local time:
PADU 180156Z 30021G27KT 5SM -RA BKN039 06/02 A2953 RMK AO2 PK WND 30027/0154 RAB41 SLP004 P0002 T00560017

Friday, October 18, 2019 at 11:36:00 AM EDT
Anonymous said...
Looks like three of the six prop blades on the left engine hit the rocks, broke off, and at least one penetrated the fuselage. Specifically right at the fifth window behind the entry door of the left side of the fuselage behind the entry door. It aligns with the prop arc. Tragic accident. I've never been comfortable as a passenger sitting in alignment to a spinning blade, either prop or the front blade of a fanjet.

Friday, October 18, 2019 at 8:19:00 PM EDT
Unknown said...
"It's very curious that a professional crew would land downwind in such a situation." They were probably on the RNAV to 13 because it's almost straight in and easier, but it's a circling approach and either runway would have been OK (assuming the METAR was correct). Definitely curious.
That plane needs 4100 feet on a normal standard day to land. Max tailwind component for the Saab 340 is 10kts and Id assume the 2000 is the same so they definitely should've tried a visual to 31 or the alt since they had 5 miles of vis, 4000 BKN and a 4500 ft runway. Someone is in trouble for sure. Ive never landed there, unsure about the terrain or anything else, but I can see that 27kts of tailwind probably wouldn't work even if he had a drag chute! Everyone screws up eventually. Wish the best for all.
Saturday, October 19, 2019 at 1:47:00 PM EDT
BD said...
Notice the king air landing on the opposite runway?

Sunday, October 20, 2019 at 11:37:00 AM EDT
marccpl said...
Wow... especially for a Part 121/135....

"You can always go around..."

Monday, October 21, 2019 at 12:04:00 PM EDT
Anonymous said...
Eye witness:
"We watched one [landing] attempt, and it was going with the wind, [approaching] from the Hog Island side," said Reinders. "Then it went back up [for] a second attempt. It went with the wind again. It did land, so all the wheels were on the ground. And then it wasn't stopping. It was slowing down, and it was apparent that it was slowing down, but it wasn't stopping."

For me it is a criminal act to intentionally land a Saab 2000 on a short runway with this tailwind.
Wednesday, October 23, 2019 at 5:45:00 AM EDT
Anonymous said...
So much for 121 running the landing data. The highest tailwind I have seen for 121 is 15 knots.

RIP to the passenger lost.

Friday, October 25, 2019 at 7:46:00 AM EDT
gretnabear said...
" With regard to shielding the fuselage, the FAA agrees with the Board's position that the extensive cabin shielding needed to protect persons from separated propellers would incur prohibitive weight penalties. Even if sufficient shielding could be provided, it would provide no protection from catastrophic structural failure due to the unbalance created by the remaining blades. Even though it would be technically feasible to prohibit the installation of seats from the areas likely to be damaged by a propeller separation for the smaller transport category airplanes currently in production and in service, there is no place to relocate the seats." https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.recsearch/Recommendation.aspx?Rec=A-87-001

Friday, October 25, 2019 at 10:48:00 AM EDT
MarcPilot said...
- The part 135 learjet in Terrerboro flown by 2 hoodlooms with a vocabulary half filled with expletives unable to do a basic circling approach and destroying a multimillion $$$ machine and killing themselves.
- The bedford, MA crash that took the life of billionaire Lewis Katz flown by 2 complacent idiots who didn't do basic preflight checks on 98% of their takeoffs and didn't realize they had the gust locks engaged taking off until it was too late, and disconnected hydraulics (hint: They also control the reverse trusters!) to try to disengage it which was the absolutely idiotic thing to do.
- And it looks like here some very complacent pilot decided to to a 27 kn tailwind landing on a very short runway, because it would save them the trouble of an extra minute of circling it.
And I could go on...
No amount of regulations, failsafes and checkrides will fix stupid. And stupid means death in Aviation. This is why it is critical CFIs training a first student wean out the complacent and lazy ones, or those who are into it for the "prestige" and to "show off to friends", etc...

Wednesday, November 13, 2019 at 11:00:00 AM EST

Inexperienced pilots and crappy tire. Gonna be expensive.

Yes, only 101 in the saab, but 20,000 flight hours ... WTF was he thinking?

I doubt the tire was even the slightest bit at fault. He hit the runway and realized he needed to brake for all he was worth...

I change 10 tires a week. If you gotta brake, you gotta brake...

With a 24 knot tailwind it takes a lot of rubber to stop a beast like that...

Yeh, not sure the reason for the tailwind landing but maybe there was one.

101 hours the Saab 2000, who knows how many into DUT.

Two glaring errors... the downwind landing and the fact they aborted the first approach and did not recognize the very strong tailwind and landing in the middle of the runway. Had they landed at the beginning of the runway they would have had a lot more room to work with.

Just enough Time in time to be PIC under the regulations, where their problem was is that the put a low time in type captain with a low time FO. They say there is a pilot shortage and yeah maybe there is, all of the Regionals are having this problem, Downwind landing, that not ideal, I was not there so I will not make an opinion. I would look at the Crew Scheduler my main question why did you crew an airplane with fairly low time in type Capt with very low time and experienced FO? That Captian should have been teamed with an FO that is about to make Captain that has a 1000 or two hours in type. I don't know what their crew roster looks like, so I can't say one way or the other, other than what I would do if I was assigning crews to an aircraft. I have been flying professionally since 1976, I am at a point that I will be pretty much retired soon.

Was the pilot used to the STOL performance of the Dash 8? 20K hours is not insignificant. I'd think it would have been enough to overcome the lack of hours in type...

The crash was a Saab 2000. Ravn Air is flying Dash 8s to Dutch now.

Yep. And if the PIC was used to the performance of the Dash 8, perhaps he thought that there was enough runway, even with the tailwind. Pure conjecture on my part.

Gotcha.

I'm not a pilot but it looks like the airport has a airplane size restriction unless airport manager approves.
The Saab 2000 is a 58 passenger. I certain there is a reasonable explanation.

UNALASKA (DUT)(PADU) 1 N UTC–9(–8DT) N53º53.94´ W166º32.70´
23 B TPA—2101(2078) ARFF Index—See Remarks NOTAM FILE DUT
RWY 13–31: H4500X100 (ASPH–GRVD) S–60, 2D–210
PCN 86 F/B/X/T MIRL
RWY 13: REIL. VASI(V4L)—GA 3.0º TCH 38´. Thld dsplcd 300´. Boat.
RWY 31: REIL. VASI(V4R)—GA 3.0º TCH 32´. Thld dsplcd 300´. Boat.
Rgt tfc.
RUNWAY DECLARED DISTANCE INFORMATION
RWY 13: TORA–4500 TODA–4500 ASDA–4200 LDA–3900
RWY 31: TORA–4337 TODA–4500 ASDA–4200 LDA–3900
SERVICE: FUEL JET A LGT For MIRL Rwy 13–31, REIL Rwys 13 and
31; stop lgt for vehicle tfc crossing Rwy 31 thld; key 122.6 – 7 times
for on, 3 times for stop lgt and REIL off. VASI Rwy 13 and Rwy 31 opr
continuously. VASI Rwy 31 usable distance is 1.4 miles due to
mountain. VASI right side of rwy skewed 5º south of rwy heading.

AIRPORT REMARKS: Attended 1700–0130Z‡. Class I, ARFF Index A.
CLOSED to air carrier ops with more than 30 pax seats exc PPR in
writing to arpt mgr P.O. Box 920525, Dutch Harbor, AK 99692.

ARFF
eqpt staffed only during periods of large air carrier ops. Arpt maint duty
hrs 1700–0130Z‡ Mon thru Sun. Arpt hazard reporting only
performed during maintenance duty hrs and for air carrier ops over 30
pax seat acft. Snow removal and deicing of rwy, twy, and ramps only
performed during maintenance duty hrs. Tfc pattern around mountain. Tran acft must park on Ramp B. Be alert: vessel
tfc within 1,500´ from Rwy 13. Be Alert: Vessel fueling dock within 1,300´ from Rwy 31. Arpt area subject to moderate
to extreme concentrations of birds. Do not perform locked wheel turns on Rwy 13–31. Personnel and eqpt may be working
on the rwy at any time. Jet blast area AER 31 clsd to taxiing acft exc when road vehicle and pedestrian tfc is ctld by oprs
representative. Clockwise turn requested. For seaplane gate opr key 122.8, 7 times to open, 3 times to close, gate closes
automatically after 5 minutes. See Section "C" notices for gate ctl procedure.
AIRPORT MANAGER: 907-581-1786
WEATHER DATA SOURCES: AWOS–3P 125.8 (907) 581–2803. (WX CAM)
CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

Attached is a link to a YouTube video showing Dash 8 landings in strong cross winds. I can see why the airlines chose to continue service with the Dash 8 to Unalaska airport.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CI9YthsaL6g

Lots of beautiful landings and lots of good decision making in not forcing them.

Jim

Ravn is using the -8 because they have them, and they have the legs to get there.

Nothing more, nothing less.

Any airplane that tries to land with such a large tailwind on a relatively short runway will have problems.