Overweight Aircraft Crashes After Takeoff From Soft Runway (N8297X)

Incident Overview and Witness Account According to a witness, the airplane was heavily loaded with passengers and baggage. The pilot elected to take off east on a 1,920-foot soft, wet runway with a 2-degree upslope, which ended at a steep drop-off. The witness reported that the wind was from the east with gusts to 20 knots and that the airplane accelerated slowly during the takeoff roll. About 20 miles east at Dillingham, the 1147 ADT wind was from 060 degrees at 5 knots. ## Flight Path and Crash After lift-off, the airplane settled in a descending left turn and crashed. Tire marks matching the airplane showed that it lifted off 261 feet before the end of the runway. No preimpact mechanical failure was evident. ## Weight and Balance The airplane's weight and balance was estimated to be 4,011 pounds with a center of gravity of 97.8 inches. Its maximum certificated gross weight was 3,600 pounds with a center of gravity range of 90 to 95 inches.