Accident Details
The North-Wright Airways Ltd. Cessna 337C aircraft, registration C-FWHP (serial number 337-0895), was operating as NWL316 under Section 703 of the Canadian Aviation Regulations. It departed Fort Good Hope, Northwest Territories, at 1250 mountain daylight time on a visual flight rules flight to Norman Wells. At 1435, the company reported the aircraft overdue to the Norman Wells flight service station, prompting radio and aerial searches. The wreckage was located at 1616, approximately 23 nautical miles east of Fort Good Hope. The pilot and five passengers sustained fatal injuries; the aircraft was destroyed. There was no post-impact fire.
Aircraft Information
The aircraft was manufactured in 1968 and had been registered to the company since 1998. It could carry five passengers. Records indicate maintenance was performed in accordance with existing regulations. The aircraft was used for daytime and nighttime VFR operations. The flight was dispatched under an operational flight plan.
Weather and Flight Path
Weather conditions in the area between Fort Good Hope and Norman Wells, along with the pilot's previous experience on the recent flight to Fort Good Hope, indicate that the pilot probably encountered instrument meteorological conditions shortly after departure. It could not be determined whether the aircraft's descent from 3500 feet above sea level was a result of the pilot's actions or external environmental elements. Before reaching 2000 feet asl, the aircraft entered a nose-up attitude, resulting in a loss of airspeed. The short wreckage trail, high vertical damage, and flight path angle through trees are consistent with the aircraft being in an aerodynamic stall.
Findings
The Transportation Safety Board determined that for undetermined reasons, the aircraft descended out of its en route altitude, entered an aerodynamic stall, and struck the ground. Investigators were unable to determine why the aircraft departed controlled flight. The aircraft was not fitted with a flight recording device, which could have helped reconstruct the circumstances. It was also not equipped with terrain awareness warning system (TAWS) equipment, nor was it required to be so equipped under the regulations at the time. The TSB Engineering Laboratory completed report LP 083/2006 – Exhaust Temperature Analysis, available upon request. The Board authorized the release of this report on 10 July 2007.