The Taquan Air flight crashed while landing in the waters of Metlakatla Harbor at about 4 p.m. Monday.A National Transportation Safety Board investigator and two Federal Aviation Administration officials arrived on the scene Tuesday. The NTSB says witness statements indicate the de Havilland Beaver aircraft flipped on impact and quickly submerged.
“They said sometime during the touchdown, the right float dug in, the airplane cartwheeled a number of times,” said Clint Johnson, chief of the NTSB Alaska Regional Office. “The right wing was severed and the airplane came to rest inverted, upside down. Obviously, the cockpit and the passenger was submerged.”
Johnson said the two victims were recovered by Metlakatla responders and others. In addition, Taquan Air brought two Guardian Flight medics who assisted with resuscitation efforts. Ketchikan Volunteer Rescue Squad, U.S. Coast Guard crews and good Samaritans also responded to the crash.
Johnson said that the wing that hit the water is still missing, but the rest of the plane has been recovered. He said a barge is set to bring the wreckage to Ketchikan to do a full investigation.
“If everything goes as planned, that wreckage will be back first thing in the morning so they can start documenting,” Johnson said. “Then they’ll start the witness interviews or the interviews at Taquan.”
Johnson said the NTSB has not identified a cause for the crash, though he said witnesses have reported that the weather was slightly windy — typical for Southeast Alaska. He said there were about 10 miles of visibility from Annette Island.
https://www.ktoo.org/2019/05/21/vict...la-identified/