ALLEGED OVER GROSS; AFT LOAD TKOF.

Narrative

JUNEAU FSDO WAS NOTIFIED OF AN ALLEGED OVER GROSS AND AFT LOADED CONDITION ON FLT FROM HOONAH TO JUNEAU. LOADED ACFT WAS OBSERVED RESTING ON ITS TAIL SKID AT THE HOONAH ARPT AS THE ENG WAS STARTED. AS ACFT TAXIED DOWNWIND FOR TKOF NOSEWHEEL WAS OBSERVED TO LIFT OFF THE GND SLIGHTLY FOR SHORT PERIODS; TKOF AND CLBOUT WERE NORMAL. THIS ACFT WAS UNDER GROSS BY OVER 100 LBS AND WITHIN ACCEPTABLE CG RANGE. COPIES OF LOAD MANIFEST AND WT AND BAL PROFILE ARE OFFERED AS PROOF OF THIS STATEMENT. WHILE AN ACFT OF THIS TYPE LOOKS UNSAFE IN A TAIL DOWN ATTITUDE; IT IS POSSIBLE FOR IT TO ASSUME THIS POS AT A LEGAL WT AND AN ACCEPTABLE CENTER OF GRAVITY. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING: RPTR SAYS ONLY ERROR HE MADE WAS PARKING ACFT WITH TAIL INTO WIND. ACFT LOADED AND PLT LAST TO GET IN. AS HE DID TAIL SETTLED WHEN GUST OF WIND; 10-15 KTS; HIT ELEVATORS WHICH WERE IN THE DOWN POS. AGENT HELD TAIL UP UNTIL PLT STARTED ENG AT WHICH TIME ACT ASSUMED 3 POINT POS. ON TAXI DOWNWIND GUSTS AGAIN CAUSED TAIL TO DSND AND RISE AS GUSTS CONTINUED. UPON LNDG DIRECTOR OF OPS TOLD RPTR THAT FSDO HAD CALLED WITH COMMENTS OF OBSERVER AT ARPT. IMMEDIATELY DID COMPUTER PRINT OF WT AND BAL AND RELAYED FIGURES TO FSDO REP WHO SAID; 'NO PROB; IT'S A DEAD ISSUE.' RPTR STATES MANY PLACES WHERE THEY PICK UP HAVE NO AGENT SO PLT DOES ESTIMATE OF LOAD. HE DOES CARRY A SMALL SCALE IN CASE HE HAS TO CONVINCE A PAS THAT SOMETHING MUST BE LEFT BEHIND. FEELS RPT MADE TO FSDO BY A COMPETITOR AT ARPT.