History of Flight
The ski-equipped Cessna A185F (registration C-GSDJ, serial number 18504212), operated by Arctic Sunwest Charters, departed Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, at 1019 mountain standard time (MST) with a pilot and three passengers on board. The flight was a round trip to Blatchford Lake Lodge, approximately 53 nautical miles southeast. The aircraft was on a company flight itinerary with an estimated arrival time of 1100 MST.
The pilot had not previously flown to the lodge and was briefed by the chief pilot on its location. Coordinates for the lodge were entered into a hand-held GPS, but the waypoint was about 1 nautical mile east of the lodge.
Accident Sequence
The last NAV CANADA radar return was at 1036 MST, about 30 nm east of Yellowknife at 500–600 feet above ground level (agl). GPS track log data showed the cruise ground speed reached 130 knots early then decreased to 100 knots after 24 minutes. Altitudes varied, with a gradual descent to 893 feet above sea level (asl; 193 feet agl) before returning to about 1050 feet asl. Average terrain elevation was around 700 feet asl.
The aircraft arrived at the north shore of Blatchford Lake approximately 0.9 nm east of the lodge. It then turned northeasterly (away from the lodge), slowing to 78 knots. One more track point was recorded 0.6 nm west of the accident site on a track of 071° magnetic at 90 knots before the GPS stopped. The aircraft was in a left turn when it began to shake just before a sudden descent and impact.
Search and Rescue
When there was no contact from the pilot by 1300 MST, a communication search and track crawl by the company was unsuccessful. No emergency locator transmitter (ELT) signal was detected. At 1513, the company reported the aircraft overdue to the Flight Service Station. The Rescue Coordination Centre conducted an active search. The wreckage was found at 1215 on January 4, 2007, on the ice at Blatchford Lake.
The pilot and two passengers sustained fatal injuries; one passenger sustained serious injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged.
Post-Impact Findings
It was determined that the aircraft stalled while in a left turn at low level. The forward windshield was obscured by ice, likely leading the pilot to use the left side window for attitude references. In the left turn, the descending left wing would have obstructed visibility, leaving only a view of the snow-covered lake surface. Conditions were conducive to a white-out situation, eliminating horizon references. The stall warning did not activate.
Calculated aircraft weight at impact was just below maximum gross weight; the amount of ice weight was not quantified. The center of gravity (C of G) was at or slightly aft of the aft limit. The aircraft was not equipped or approved for icing conditions. Cargo and baggage were not secured, and there were no means on board for securing them to tie-down rings. The ELT’s impact switch was oriented to sense forward impact, not vertical impact, delaying SAR efforts.
The pilot had about 16 hours of commercial flying time under Section 700 of the CARs and about 1500 hours of non-commercial single-engine time. He had completed low-level flying training but did not adhere to the operations manual requirement to operate at 80 KIAS with 10° of flap; airspeeds varied from 130 to 77 KIAS, and flaps were not deployed. The company operations manual specified that the Cessna 185 would not depart into forecast icing conditions; freezing fog and patchy moderate mixed icing were forecast for the destination, and a pilot report from 0651 reported rime ice upon entering clouds at 1100 feet asl. The pilot had not received required training in GPS use for low-level flight under the operator's Transport Canada exemption.