Incident Overview
Description
The float equipped DHC-3T was taking off from Otter Creek with three passengers on an approved VFR flight. After lifting off the water on a normal take off, the control column pitched violently forward and then back before returning to a neutral position. Before the pilot could reduce power to land, the aircraft pitched nose-down. There was no indication of wing stall prior to the nose drop. The pilot was unable to raise the nose from the nose-down attitude. The aircraft impacted the water in a wings-level nose-down attitude. After impact the pilot assisted the passengers to egress. The pilot’s exit was blocked, as the floats had detached on impact and one of the floats was up against his door. The pilot directed the right front seat passenger to leave via his exit, then proceeded to the back of the aircraft, collected life jackets, and exited with the remaining two passengers via the high side (port) aft exit. They were rescued shortly afterwards by boat. The aircraft sustained substantial damage during the impact, and sank in 55 feet of water.
Primary Cause
Control column instability during takeoff and flight.Control column instability during takeoff and flight.Share on:
