Accident Overview
On August 9, 2010, at approximately 1442 Alaska daylight time, a de Havilland DHC-3T airplane, registration N455A, impacted mountainous, tree-covered terrain about 10 nautical miles northeast of Aleknagik, Alaska. The aircraft was a single-engine, turbine-powered amphibious floatplane. The airline transport pilot and four passengers received fatal injuries, and four passengers received serious injuries. The airplane sustained substantial damage, including deformation and breaching of the fuselage.
Flight Details
The flight was operated by GCI Communication Corp. of Anchorage, Alaska, under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. It departed at about 1427 from a GCI-owned private lodge on the shore of Lake Nerka and was en route to a remote sport fishing camp approximately 52 nautical miles southeast on the Nushagak River. No flight plan was filed.
Weather Conditions
Around the time of the accident, meteorological conditions meeting the criteria for marginal visual flight rules were reported at Dillingham Airport, Dillingham, Alaska, about 18 nautical miles south of the accident site.