What happened
Following maintenance work performed in Thorne Bay, a single-engine aircraft was performing a flight back to its home base in Ketchikan. During the initial climb phase of the flight, the aircraft experienced a loss of engine power. In response to the engine failure, the pilot attempted to execute an emergency landing on the water.
During the process of landing on the surface, a control wire on the aircraft snapped. This mechanical failure caused the aircraft to pitch forward into the water, ultimately coming to rest in an inverted position. The aircraft subsequently sank at the scene.
Findings
- The primary sequence of events began with a loss of power during the climb.
- A control wire breakage occurred during the water landing attempt, which led to the aircraft nose-diving.
- All three occupants were successfully recovered by the Coast Guard approximately 20 minutes after the incident.