What happened
During a period of freezing drizzle, a pilot prepared for an IFR departure with 1,512 lbs of cargo loaded. While taxiing on a runway covered in snow and ice, the aircraft experienced a wing drop shortly after rotation, resulting in a touchdown back on the runway surface. A subsequent inspection of the aircraft showed that ice had accumulated on the upper wing surfaces and leading edges.
Efforts to secure deicing equipment were unsuccessful as no such services were available at the airfield. Although the pilot was offered the use of a hangar to protect the plane, this offer was declined. The pilot attempted to manually clear ice from the leading edges by hand. Despite the presence of an airport manager who was traveling to inspect the runway for plowing operations, the pilot proceeded with another takeoff attempt approximately 30 minutes after the scheduled departure time.
During this second attempt, the aircraft achieved liftoff roughly one-fifth of the way down the runway and began a climb at 50 feet above ground level. After reaching an altitude of several hundred feet, the aircraft entered a stall and descended in an uncontrolled manner. The impact with trees led to the destruction of the aircraft by fire and resulted in one fatality.
Findings
Investigation into the accident identified several contributing factors related to the environmental conditions and operational decisions. The primary issues included:
- Presence of icing conditions during flight
- Accumulation of ice on the wings and stabilizer
- Failure to properly remove frost or ice from the aircraft surfaces
- Deteriorated takeoff performance due to weight and ice
- Inadequate runway snow removal by airport personnel
- The pilot's decision to proceed despite the lack of deicing capabilities