De Havilland DHC-3 Otter crash, Sep 15, 2015 (3 killed)
De Havilland DHC-3 Otter accident on September 15, 2015 near Iliamna, Alaska, United States with 3 fatalities. Cause: NTSB (as cited by BAAA): the...
- Date: September 15, 2015
- Aircraft: De Havilland DHC-3 Otter
- Location: Iliamna, Alaska, United States
- Fatalities: 3
- Phase of flight: Takeoff and climb
- Cause: NTSB (as cited by BAAA): the pilot's decision to depart in dark night visual conditions over water, which led to spatial disorientation and loss of airplane control, with contributing failure to determine the actual weight and center of gravity, leading to an aerodynamic stall.
A Rainbow King Lodge DHC 3T Otter departed East Wind Lake near Iliamna, Alaska, in darkness with ten people aboard for a remote fishing site on the Swishak River. It impacted tundra just after takeoff, killing three passengers and seriously injuring the pilot and four passengers. The NTSB found the pilot's decision to depart at night over water led to spatial disorientation, and that the aircraft was operated outside its weight and center of gravity limits.