FLOAT PLANE LNDG TRIED TO AVOID A SAIL BOAT AND DUG A WING TIP INTO THE WATER.

1988-07 · NASA ASRS report 90342

Date: 1988-07 · Aircraft: Small Aircraft

Anomalies: conflict-ground-conflict|critical|inflight-event-encounter-loss-of-aircraft-control|other-unspecified

Synopsis

FLOAT PLANE LNDG TRIED TO AVOID A SAIL BOAT AND DUG A WING TIP INTO THE WATER.

Narrative

WATER LNDG WAS COMPLETED ON A CHARTER FLT WITH 3 PAX INTO LAKE UNION. WINDS WERE OUT OF THE NW AT APPROX 5. LNDG WAS MADE TO THE SW WITH A LIGHT XWIND. BOAT TFC WAS HEAVY ON THE ENTIRE LAKE. I TOUCHED DOWN IN AN AREA RELATIVELY FREE OF OBSTACLES. THE ONLY FACTOR WAS A SMALL SAIL BOAT ON THE LEFT TRAVELING AWAY FROM ME; PARALLEL TO MY LNDG DIRECTION. AFTER T/D THE SAIL BOAT BEGAN MERGING TO THE RIGHT INTO MY TAXI PATH. I CHOSE TO PULL THE PWR OFF INSTEAD OF ATTEMPTING A STEP TAXI TURN; AS I DIDN'T BELIEVE THERE WAS ENOUGH ROOM TO AVOID ALL OBSTACLES AT A HIGH RATE OF SPD. AS THE ACFT SETTLED OFF THE STEP I INITIATED A TURN TO THE RIGHT TO AVOID THE MERGING BOAT TFC. CENTRIFUGAL FORCE ALONG WITH A RIGHT XWIND CAUSED THE RIGHT WING TO RAISE. THE ACFT LEFT WING IMPACTED THE WATER; CAUSING THE NOSE TO PITCH FORWARD PUTTING THE LOWER SECTION OF THE ENG COWLING INTO THE WATER. THE PLANE THEN CAME TO REST UPRIGHT; ENG RUNNING AND DAMAGE TO THE LEFT WING. NO INJURIES. PAX WERE LET OFF AT THE DOCK AND PICKED UP BY ANOTHER ACFT. MY ACFT WAS TAXIED BACK TO BASE. I WAS TIRED AFTER HAVING JUST RETURNED FROM ANOTHER FLT JUST PRIOR TO THIS INCIDENT. THIS WAS A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR TO HAVING SLOWER REACTIONS. I HAD NO WAY OF KNOWING THE BOAT WAS ABOUT TO CHANGE COURSE; BUT SINCE IT DID; MY ONLY OPTION WAS TURNING INTO THE WIND (DUE TO XWIND LNDG). PERHAPS IT COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED BY CIRCLING FOR BOAT TFC UNTIL AN UPWIND LNDG COULD BE MADE. THIS WOULD HAVE GIVEN ME MORE POSITIVE GND MANEUVERING AND SLOWER WATER SPD. POSSIBLY HAD I OBSERVED MORE CLOSELY I MIGHT HAVE SEEN THAT THE SAILBOAT HAD ME IN SIGHT AND WAS TRYING TO MAKE A TURN INSTEAD OF CONVERGING INTO MY PATH. LESSONS ARE TO AVOID XWIND LNDGS IF POSSIBLE AND BETTER JUDGE MOVEMENT OF BOAT TFC. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING: AS OF THIS DATE; RPTR HAS HEARD NOTHING FROM FAA OR NTSB. HE HAS TURNED IN THE REQUIRED RPTS. HE SUSPECTS INCIDENT MAY BE CONSIDERED AN ACCIDENT BECAUSE OF THE DAMAGE TO THE LEFT WING. HE REITERATED THAT THERE WERE NO PERSONAL INJURIES.

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.

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