Notes Pilot Failed To Get Weather Briefings

(Editor's Note: Below is the Preliminary Report released this week on the October 7 loss of a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan in Washington state. While lacking any new insights into possible causes of the accident, the report does paint a vivid picture of the sequence of events leading to the downing of the turboprop aircraft, which claimed the lives of the 10 persons onboard.)

NTSB Identification: LAX08MA007
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Sunday, October 07, 2007 in Naches, WA
Aircraft: Cessna 208B, registration: N430A
Injuries: 10 Fatal.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.

On October 7, 2007, about 1959 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 208B, N430A, collided with terrain near Naches, Washington. The owner was operating the airplane as a personal flight under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The commercial pilot and nine passengers sustained fatal injuries; the airplane was destroyed. The flight departed Star (ID92), Idaho, about 1830, en route to Shelton (SHN), Washington. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at Yakima, Washington, which was the nearest official reporting station. A ground observer noted that instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the accident site. No flight plan had been filed. The approximate global position satellite (GPS) coordinates were 46 degrees 35.24 minutes north latitude 121 degrees 21.14 minutes longitude.

About 1950, a hunter heard a loud noise that he thought sounded like a dragster or engine winding out. A few minutes later he was outside his trailer, and heard an airplane engine and observed airplane lights. He saw a bright white light, as well as red and green navigation lights. The lights appeared to be horizontal, and then went vertical toward the ground. He heard what he thought was a thud, and reported this to local officials. He noted that the cloud bases were below the mountain tops with misty rain conditions and low visibility. Yakima officials began to mobilize search teams, and notified the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The FAA had no reports of a missing airplane. Yakima Search and Rescue was about to terminate the mobilization when the operator notified the FAA of an overdue airplane. The Prescott Automated Flight Service Station (AFSS) issued an alert notice (ALNOT) at 0108. Yakima Search and Rescue began searching the following morning, and found the wreckage about 2000 that evening.

The FAA reported that no FAA or FAA contract facility provided service to the pilot. They had no record of a pilot preflight weather briefing. Their report noted that VFR conditions generally prevailed along the route of flight except for IFR conditions in the Cascades Mountains and the western foothills. It noted AIRMETs (Airmen's Meteorological Information) for icing, low level turbulence, and mountain obscuration.

A preliminary review of recorded radar data indicated that a target departed Star and transited across southern Washington. The target made a series of left and right turns after passing Yakima at a mode C reported altitude of 12,400 feet. The target was at a mode C altitude of 14,400 feet when it made a tight 360-degree turn, and lost 1,400 feet in 12 seconds. The target stayed at a mode C reported altitude of 13,000 feet for three radar hits. The last target was in the vicinity of the accident site at a mode C altitude of 8,900 feet. The accident site was about 4,300 feet.

Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board, the FAA, and Cessna examined the wreckage at the accident scene.

The airplane came to rest in forested, mountainous terrain. The mishap site was approximately 100 feet long and 60 feet wide with the upper parts of the airplane oriented on a north heading.

The structure of the airframe compressed into the principle impact crater so that the leading edges of the horizontal stabilizers were inches above ground level. They exhibited aft crush damage. Both wings exhibited aft crush damage. The propeller and nose of the engine were about 5 feet below ground level. The engine separated into multiple pieces. The propeller hub fragmented, and the blades exhibited S-bending, blade scratching, and twisting.

Investigators accounted for all major components at the mishap site. They observed deice boots on the wings, wing struts, and tail surfaces. They established flight control cable continuity for the elevator trim. The elevator, rudder, and aileron control cables exhibited multiple separations; the cables separated in a broomstraw manner. The right flap was up; the left flap separated from the airframe. The firewall, instrument panel, switch and circuit breaker panels, cockpit, cabin, and fuselage were fragmented. The cabin seats and ELT were fragmented; investigators observed seat belts. An oxygen bottle, cased optical glasses, and a stowed oxygen mask were in the wreckage.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov