What happened
On 23 December 2017, a Britten Norman BN-2A Islander, registration P2-ISM, crashed into a ridge within the Sarawaget Ranges in Morobe Province. The aircraft, operated by North Coast Aviation, was performing a flight from Derim Airstrip toward Nadzab Airport. During the flight, the pilot chose a route across the ranges at an altitude of approximately 9,500 feet. The flight path initially moved northwest from Derim for about 6.5 nautical miles before turning southwest toward the Saidor Gap.
GPS data indicates that the aircraft was in a shallow descent just before the final recorded position. The plane struck a ridge located near the Sapmanga Valley approximately 150 meters after the last GPS fix. No emergency locator transmitter signal was reported following the impact. Search teams located a piece of the right aileron attached to a tree near the crest of the heavily forested ridge, while the main wreckage was discovered roughly 130 meters away. The impact occurred in a steep, nose-down, and right-wing-low orientation, and the force of the collision destroyed the aircraft.
Findings
The aircraft struck the terrain while in a shallow descent toward the ridge. Although the pilot survived the initial impact and had communicated with another pilot from the same operator later that afternoon, the pilot succumbed to injuries. The official time of death was recorded as 10:40 local time on 24 December 2017. The single fatality involved the pilot, who was the only person on board the aircraft.