Remember this one from just over a year ago?
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| A Saab 2000 twin-engine turboprop crashed at the Unalaska airport Oct. 17, 2019, killing one passenger and injuring four others. (National Transportation Safety Board photo) |
Mechanical issue discovered after fatal Unalaska plane crash, federal documents show
The Ravn Air Group pilots who landed in gusty, shifting winds on Oct. 17, 2019, lacked the flying time traditionally required for the challenging landing in notorious Aleutian weather on a short runway, according to a massive fact-finding docket released Wednesday by the National Transportation Safety Board.
A report that’s part of the docket also describes concerns about Ravn’s safety culture at the time.
During landing after a second approach to Unalaska in windy conditions with 39 passengers and three crew, the plane careened off the runway, crashing through a perimeter fence and across a road before coming to rest on rocks at the water’s edge, the front wheel in the water of Dutch Harbor. Shrapnel and part of a propeller sliced into the cabin.
David Allan Oltman, a 38-year-old Washington state man coming to Unalaska for work, died and four passengers were injured.
An experienced commercial pilot sitting next to Oltman noted a heavy squall in the distance and wind gusts hitting the water, according to a first-person account included in the docket. The plane landed, then skidded to the right, the man said. He saw water coming at him. The ceiling collapsed and the propeller nearly hit him.
The man, who suffered “moderate” compression fractures, tried to help his critically injured seatmate. A doctor began administering first aid. The forward exit was in the water and the plane’s angle was too steep to evacuate Oltman through the rear, so they waited for medics to arrive.
The man “noted that if he was 2 inches over, he would have been killed,” the account states. “He noted that while he was assisting the victim, someone asked the pilots what happened, and one pilot said something like ‘the computer said we should be ok.’”
Oltman’s death marked the first crash-related fatality for a U.S. commercial airline in the past decade.
8 comments:
Reverend, I barely remember it. Culture matters. Unfortunately it cost a man his life.
That statistic is stunning. First crash related fatality on a commercial airline in a decade.
I suspect many operators in Alaska survive on razor thin margins.
TB, I know it was 14 months ago, and PC (pre-Covid). Probably was a much bigger impact up here (no puns intended). But yes, that's a remarkable statistic.
WSF, that is absolutely so. I've read statements from pilots, instructors, inspectors, and the local NTSB folks all confirming that. This can be one treacherous place to hang an airplane in the sky & expect it to stay there.
The report quotes a Ravn vice president of operations saying the 300-hour minimum didn’t track with airlines in the Lower 48: “I’m not convinced that it’s necessary because it’s not done elsewhere. There are mountains around the country, around the world. Air is air. Physics are physics. Why is this different?”
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the definition of hubris.
WSF - yeah, I used to work for PenAir, a long time ago. Profits were scarce on the ground, fuel is almost always going up, airplanes keep getting older... but there were a lot of good people there, who did it because they loved it more than because it was a way to make money.
Wing - that's what we get when a company in California buys a regional line like Ravn, and ignorant people are allowed to shoot off their mouths before learning about Alaska. I just hope no one else has to find out the hard way why it's so.
Wing and a Whim
I understand the dedication and once had it. The reality of family and the needs of a handicapped child dictated change. At one time I was employed by General Construction, Seattle in subsidiaries and had a fair amount of experience as a passenger in Alaska. One of my co-workers was killed in a float plane accident off Kodiak.
Over reliance on a @#$% COMPUTER... again Flying 101 was lost.
NFO, it's a strange combination of over-reliance or failure to even use said tech. For example, far too many either have no locator transponders, or fail to turn them on. And the Alaskan program which was attempting to encourage pilots to get the minimal training in use, and then use them, was discontinued several years ago.
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