De Havilland DHC-3 N560TR

Summary

On 21 August 2021 at about 21:25 local time, a De Havilland DHC-3 registered N560TR, operated by Sourdough Air Service, Inc., was involved in an accident near Bettles, Alaska, United States. 3 people were 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

21 August 2021 at 21:25

Classification

Accident

Location

Bettles, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

68.0753, -155.8390

Aircraft

De Havilland DHC-3

Registration

N560TR

Category

Airplane

Year built

1956

Engines

1

Operator

Sourdough Air Service, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter

Purpose of flight

Business

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Issygok Lake → Jobe Lake

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC21LA094

Nobody was injured.

The seizure of the engine during flight for undetermined reasons, which led to a total loss of engine power.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, while on the base leg approach, he heard a “loud bang,” and the engine lost total power. The pilot determined that the airplane would not be able to reach its intended destination, so he turned the airplane into the wind and made a forced landing on tundra-covered terrain, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage. The airplane’s maintenance records were unremarkable. Postaccident examination of the engine revealed that it had seized and sheared the propeller spline into two pieces. The accessory wall could not be removed because of the extensive internal damage to the engine. As a result, the investigation was unable to determine the reason that the engine seized during the flight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.