Aircraft Crashes During Night Approach in Fog at Nuiqsut (N51418)

Incident Overview

An aircraft crashed during the approach to land at a fogged-in airport at night. The accident occurred sometime between 2045 and 2100 YST in Nuiqsut. A villager who heard the aircraft stated that the engine noise decreased as though the aircraft was landing. He then heard a sound described as a piece of metal roofing sliding across gravel. The villager thought the aircraft had landed but did not see any lights on the runway. He also stated he could not see across the runway due to the fog.

Passenger Reports

According to passengers who flew outbound to Deadhorse with the same pilot, the lights in the cockpit were marginal, and the pilot used a flashlight some of the time. A passenger on that flight reported that a couple of times the aircraft 'dropped' when the pilot lost sight of lights on the ground.

Pilot Background

The pilot was alone on the return trip. The pilot had a history of hypertension and was taking medicine for high blood pressure.