Stinson AT-19 accident at Nome, Alaska, 2 Oct 1956

Accident narrative

On October 2, 1956, Alaska Airlines Flight 701, a Stinson AT-19, crashed during a snowstorm near Nome, Alaska, at approximately 1825 Bering standard time. All five occupants were killed, and the aircraft was demolished.

**The flight**

Flight 701 was a scheduled passenger operation between Unalakleet and Nome, with several intermediate stops including Council. The airline's operations specifications restricted the route to day visual flight rules (VFR) conditions. The pilot, 25-year-old John D. Hutchinson, had over 5,000 hours of flight time in single-engine aircraft, but the investigation noted he had no training or experience with instrument flight.

The flight departed Unalakleet at 1321 and proceeded routinely to Council. The VFR flight plan estimated a cruising true airspeed of 90 miles per hour and showed 74 gallons of fuel aboard, enough for about 4 hours and 30 minutes.

At 1745, the Stinson departed Council for the final leg to Nome with four passengers aboard. The estimated flying time was 40 minutes. Sunset at Council had occurred at 1719, and official civil twilight for the area—which defined the end of "day" operations—was scheduled to end at 1815. The departure time indicated the flight could not be completed before darkness.

After takeoff, the aircraft was observed taking a southwesterly heading toward the coastline. This coastal route to Nome was 17 miles longer than the direct route but could be flown near sea level rather than over rugged terrain, and it offered occasional ground lights. Atmospheric conditions that day made radio communications difficult, and no messages were received from the flight. At 2023, Flight 701 was reported overdue.

**What the investigation found**

Searchers located the wreckage the following afternoon on Cape Nome, about 15 miles east-southeast of Nome. The aircraft had crashed at an elevation of 25 feet above sea level at the eastern base of a 650-foot ridge. The ridge lay directly across the flight path to Nome.

The wreckage indicated the airplane struck the ground at a downward angle of more than 45 degrees with the left wing low. Gouges in the earth showed the propeller was rotating at high r.p.m. at impact. Although the bearing from the crash site toward Nome was 284 degrees true, the aircraft was heading approximately 157 degrees true when it struck the ground.

Investigators accounted for all aircraft components and found no evidence of fire, structural failure, or in-flight equipment malfunction. The flaps were retracted, and the elevator tab was set slightly to trim the nose downward. The aircraft was equipped with a complete set of blind flight instruments, but the company was not authorized to conduct instrument flights over the route with light aircraft. The gross weight at takeoff was computed to be 4,163 pounds, which was 167 pounds below the maximum allowable limit.

Weather forecasts available to the pilot before the flight called for a 3,000-foot ceiling with scattered to broken clouds. However, a post-accident weather analysis indicated a cold, unstable air mass in the Cape Nome area with scattered snow showers. The Weather Bureau concluded conditions at the crash site could have been as low as a 500-foot obscured ceiling and one-half mile visibility in moderate snow showers. A professional pilot driving in the area around 1745 reported seeing a snow shower moving in from the northwest, stating he believed conditions would have been below minimums even without the failing light.

The Civil Aeronautics Board questioned the pilot's judgment in departing Council so shortly before sunset. Because Council lacked lighting facilities and there were no suitable alternate airports, he was committed to completing the flight to Nome. The Board believed that as the flight proceeded westward along the coast in near-total darkness, the pilot likely encountered snow showers that further reduced visibility.

The Board concluded it was probable the pilot completely lost visual contact with the ground and, lacking instrument training, lost control of the aircraft and struck the ground in a steep spiral. The Board also noted it was possible he caught a fleeting glimpse of the ridge at low altitude and lost control while attempting to avoid it. Icing was ruled out as a probable contributing factor.

**Probable cause**

The Civil Aeronautics Board determined that the probable cause of this accident was "the action of the pilot in flying into conditions of darkness and adverse weather in which he could not maintain adequate control of the aircraft."