History of Flight
On September 30, 2012, about 1545 Alaska daylight time, a Quest Aircraft Company Kodiak 100 airplane, registration N745, equipped with amphibious floats, sustained substantial damage while landing at the Lake Hood Seaplane Base in Anchorage, Alaska. The flight was conducted as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country public-use flight under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91, operated by the U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The certificated commercial pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a VFR flight plan had been filed. The flight originated at King Salmon Airport, Alaska, about 1300.
The flight was the final leg of a 4-day Emperor Goose survey that began on September 27. The pilot and another pilot/biologist departed from Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport to King Salmon Airport. On September 28, they flew a 5-hour mission to Cold Bay Airport, and on September 29, they flew a 4-hour survey mission before returning to King Salmon Airport. All landings prior to the accident flight were made on a prepared runway surface using wheels.
The accident flight stopped briefly at Kenai Municipal Airport to drop off the accompanying pilot/biologist, then continued to Lake Hood Seaplane Base. The pilot stated she had not conducted a water landing since September 1 and chose to land at Lake Hood to maintain water-landing proficiency. She reported completing the before-landing checklist, setting approximately 50 percent right rudder trim, and confirming the wheels were in the up position. Her airspeed on approach was slightly faster than normal. During touchdown, the airplane veered left, then right, then violently right, as though it "caught a float." The right wing struck the water, the airplane pivoted abruptly, cartwheeled, and the wreckage began to sink. The pilot unfastened her seatbelt, attempted to open the pilot-side door but could not, then exited through a broken passenger window onto the inverted fuselage.
A pilot-rated witness on the north shore of Lake Spenard reported that the airplane appeared to touch down in a slight nose-low attitude. After touchdown, it veered left and right, rolled from side to side with increasing amplitude, pivoted to the right, cartwheeled, and came to rest inverted. Parts were shed during the sequence, and the floats became detached.
Personnel Information
The pilot, age 36, held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land and single-engine sea. She reported 1,650 total flight hours, including 550 hours in seaplanes. In the Kodiak 100 with amphibious floats, she had accumulated 232 hours and 68 water landings, 66 of which were with an instructor. Her most recent FAA second-class medical certificate was issued in September 2011.
She received approximately 8 hours of flight training in the Kodiak 100 on amphibious floats from Lake and Air Inc., and about 68 hours from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Office of Aviation Services (OAS). Training included water and land operations and was completed in March 2012. Her interagency pilot evaluation/qualification check was completed on April 1, 2012. The DOI Airplane Pilot Qualification card authorized her to fly the Kodiak 100 with limitations: "MISSION FLIGHTS = LOW LEVEL. Mission flights limited to 2 (two) carded pilots on board. OK for solo non mission flights."
Her most recent flight review was completed on October 15, 2011, consisting of 2 hours of ground training and 0.7 hours of flight time in an amphibious float-equipped Kodiak 100. Title 14 CFR 61.56 requires a minimum of 1 hour of flight training and 1 hour of ground training.
During an interview on October 2, the pilot stated she was not comfortable landing in the water lane at Lake Hood due to the left-turning tendency of the airplane during water landings. She had set 50 percent right rudder trim in anticipation. She also stated that at the first sign of loss of directional control, her initial instinct was to lower the water rudders or add power. In a subsequent conversation on October 16, she stated that she had completed one 180-degree step turn during initial training, but step turns were not completed during her qualification check because the check pilot was not comfortable performing them; they signed off the maneuver on the check ride form without accomplishing it.
Aircraft Information
The airplane was manufactured in 2009 and registered to the owner in September 2010. It was equipped with a Pratt & Whitney PT6A-34, 750-shaft horsepower turbo-propeller engine and a Hartzell HC-E4N-3PY/D9511FS four-blade propeller. The airplane had accumulated 284 hours at the time of the accident. Its most recent annual inspection was completed on May 31, 2012. The airplane was originally manufactured with fixed tricycle landing gear and received Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) approval for Wipaire Inc. Wipline 7000 amphibious floats in June 2010; installation was completed on July 8, 2010, and the airplane had accumulated approximately 245 hours since then.
Meteorological Information
The closest weather reporting facility, Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, about 1 mile west of the accident site, reported at 2353 (about 8 minutes after the accident): wind calm, visibility 10 statute miles, few clouds at 6000 feet, scattered clouds at 13,000 and 20,000 feet, temperature 45°F, dew point 29°F, altimeter 30.02 inHg.
Wreckage and Impact Information
On October 2, 2012, recovery crews and a diver recovered the wreckage from Spenard Lake. All major components were recovered, and control continuity was established to all flight controls. A wreckage examination was conducted on October 2 and 3, with assistance from FAA, Quest Aircraft Company, and Wipaire Inc.
The left wing was separated at the fuselage with extensive leading edge crushing and upward bending from approximately wing station (WS) 176 outboard. The left wing flap remained attached; the right aileron was fragmented at WS 176, and the hinge bracket was pulled out. The right wing remained attached but displaced aft. Flight control surfaces on the right wing remained connected. The engine remained attached to the firewall with impact damage. The propeller remained attached; all four blades were bent aft with torsional "S" twisting. The fuselage was intact with relatively little impact damage. The left and right horizontal stabilizers and elevators remained attached, though the right sustained impact damage. The vertical stabilizer and rudder remained attached with minor damage. The rudder trim was measured at approximately 50 percent to the right. Both left and right forward and aft float struts were separated at their attachment fittings. The rear float spreader bar separated at both float attachment points and was not recovered. The wheels were confirmed in the up and locked position, consistent with a water landing.
Additional Information
During an interview on October 3, the Chief Pilot/Training and Standardization Manager for the Alaska Region OAS stated that the Kodiak 100 on Wipline 7000 amphibious floats had a left-turning tendency when the propeller was in beta and that water rudders could be deployed if directional control was needed once off the step. He also stated that the airplane was not a "beginner's airplane" and tended to be unforgiving.
The Senior Flight Instructor for Lake and Air stated on October 3 that as the Kodiak 100 on Wipline 7000 floats came off the step, there was a left-turning tendency when power was applied. He stated that he did not condone or recommend deploying water rudders with the airplane still on the step.
Organizational Information
The DOI Departmental Manual, Aviation Management, Part 351, Chapter 3, requires pilots to meet minimum ratings and experience. For incidental/dual function pilots: commercial certificate, instrument rating, 500 hours PIC VFR, 25 hours PIC night, 24 hours PIC in category in last fiscal year, 10 hours PIC in make and model, 25 hours PIC in seaplanes. Vendor pilots must meet Part 135 requirements: 1500 hours total, 1200 hours PIC, 25 hours PIC in seaplanes, 100 hours in last 12 months.
Training program requirements: prior to operating, a pilot must complete a make and model checkout of 10 hours flight time, a turbine aircraft module of 50 hours in make and model, and a floatplane operations module including 10 hours lake and general, 10 hours river/stream, 5 hours ocean/saltwater, and 10 hours amphibious float operations. If a pilot has 25 or more hours of seaplane operations, the hour requirement is waived, but standards must still be met. To operate the Kodiak 100 on amphibious floats for DOI, a minimum of 50 hours flight training was required.
A review of the DOI flight training program revealed a general outline with hour requirements but no curriculums, events, or testing/checking procedures. No maneuvers and procedures or acceptable performance guidelines were developed for the amphibious float-equipped Kodiak 100. Training was recorded on a "Seaplane Instruction Form" with numbers 1-5 for grading, but no grading was used on the accident pilot's record; only check marks were placed next to maneuvers performed. The DOI had not developed specific procedures for the Kodiak 100; multiple checklists existed, and pilots were allowed to use whichever they preferred.
FAA Advisory Circular 00.1-1, "Government Aircraft Operations," provides guidance on whether operations are public or civil. Generally, public aircraft operations include law enforcement, low-level observation, biological resource management, etc. During the NTSB February 2009 public hearing, FAA representatives testified that the FAA has no statutory authority to regulate public aircraft operations, except within the National Airspace System.