Piper PA-31-350 N4112K

Summary

On 14 March 2009 at about 20:52 local time, a Piper PA-31-350 registered N4112K, operated by Frontier Flying Service, was involved in an accident near Buckland, Alaska, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

14 March 2009 at 20:52

Classification

Accident

Location

Buckland, Alaska, United States

Nearest airport

Buckland (PABL)

Coordinates

65.9814, -161.1492

Aircraft

Piper PA-31-350

Registration

N4112K

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Frontier Flying Service

Operating rule

Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Kotzebue → Buckland

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC09LA025

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to abort the landing while landing on a snow/ice-covered runway.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot was on a cargo flight when he landed on the snow-covered runway and, upon touching down, he noticed the braking action was nil. He said that about 500 feet from the departure end of the runway he realized that stopping was going to be a problem, but he elected not to abort the landing. The airplane slid off the end of the runway and struck a snowbank, causing structural damage to the left wing. He said that he had not received any reports about braking action for the airport that day, but that he had landed there on the previous day and that the condition of the runway then was acceptable. According to the pilot, there were no known mechanical problems with the airplane prior to the accident. After the accident he examined the runway surface and determined that it was light snow over ice. The Federal Aviation Administration Flight Information Supplement, Alaska, Buckland Airport, under airport remarks, says, in part: "Unattended. Runway condition not monitored, recommend visual inspection prior to landing."

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.