Wien Air Alaska Flight 99 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight in Alaska to St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea. On approach to Gambell on 30 August 1975, it crashed into Sevuokuk Mountain, east of the airport's runway. Of the 32 on board, ten were killed, including the captain and first officer. The Fairchild F-27B aircraft was operated by Wien Air Alaska.
Flight 99 originated in Nome on Saturday, August 30, 1975, bound for Savoonga and Gambell. The flight from Nome to Savoonga was uneventful, and the plane departed Savoonga for Gambell at 1:27 pm Bering daylight time.[1] As Gambell did not have a control tower, the Wien agent at Gambell, upon hearing the plane radio its departure from Savoonga, turned on the non-directional beacon at Gambell to aid the flight's crew in navigation.
Fog was prevalent in the Gambell area, and the crew discussed strategies to land at the airport. After several missed approaches, the plane flew north over the community, and turned east, and then south to make one final pass. The plane passed over Troutman Lake east of Gambell, and turned south, before impacting Sevuokuk Mountain at an elevation of 424 feet (130 m).[1]
After impact, the plane broke apart and was propelled up the mountain approximately 132 feet (40 m), coming to rest inverted. A fire broke out, and the residents of the village came to aid,[2][3] attempting to put the fire out with hand-held extinguishers.[1] All but one of the injured passengers were able to escape the wreckage. Most of the injured or killed passengers were natives of Nome, Gambell, or Savoonga.[4]
CauseEdit
The cause of the crash, according to the NTSB, was improper IFR (Instrument flight rules) operation, failing to adhere to instrument approach procedures. The airplane collided with a mountain on a missed approach to landing, after multiple missed approaches. The weather at the airport was unsafe for landing, with a low ceiling and sea fog.[1][5]
ReferencesEdit
^ abcd"Aircraft Accident Report - Wien Air Alaska, Inc. Fairchild F-27B, N4904, Gambell, St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, August 30, 1975" (PDF). National Transportation Safety Board. 7 January 1976. NTSB-AAR-76-1. - Copy at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
^"Propjet crashes in Alaska". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. 31 August 1975. p. 2A.
^"Eskimo villagers rescue crash survivors". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. 1 September 1975. p. 2A.
^Beitler, Stu (2 September 1975). "Gambell, AK Airliner Crashes into hillside". Fairbanks News-Miner. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
^"NTSB Identification: DCA76AZ004". www.ntsb.gov. National Transportation Safety Board. DCA76AZ004. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
wien, alaska, flight, scheduled, domestic, passenger, flight, alaska, lawrence, island, bering, approach, gambell, august, 1975, crashed, into, sevuokuk, mountain, east, airport, runway, board, were, killed, including, captain, first, officer, fairchild, aircr. Wien Air Alaska Flight 99 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight in Alaska to St Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea On approach to Gambell on 30 August 1975 it crashed into Sevuokuk Mountain east of the airport s runway Of the 32 on board ten were killed including the captain and first officer The Fairchild F 27B aircraft was operated by Wien Air Alaska Wien Air Alaska Flight 99Fairchild F 27 aircraftAccidentDate30 August 19751 57 pm BDTSummaryControlled flight into terrain in fog pilot errorSiteSevuokuk Mountain near Gambell Airport Gambell Alaska United States 63 45 54 N 171 42 29 W 63 765 N 171 708 W 63 765 171 708AircraftAircraft typeFairchild F 27BOperatorWien Air AlaskaRegistrationN4904Flight originNome Airport Nome Alaska1st stopoverSavoonga Airport Savoonga AlaskaDestinationGambell Airport Gambell AlaskaOccupants32Passengers28Crew4Fatalities10Injuries22Survivors22Gambellclass notpageimage Location in Alaska Contents 1 Flight 2 Cause 3 References 4 External linksFlight EditFlight 99 originated in Nome on Saturday August 30 1975 bound for Savoonga and Gambell The flight from Nome to Savoonga was uneventful and the plane departed Savoonga for Gambell at 1 27 pm Bering daylight time 1 As Gambell did not have a control tower the Wien agent at Gambell upon hearing the plane radio its departure from Savoonga turned on the non directional beacon at Gambell to aid the flight s crew in navigation Fog was prevalent in the Gambell area and the crew discussed strategies to land at the airport After several missed approaches the plane flew north over the community and turned east and then south to make one final pass The plane passed over Troutman Lake east of Gambell and turned south before impacting Sevuokuk Mountain at an elevation of 424 feet 130 m 1 After impact the plane broke apart and was propelled up the mountain approximately 132 feet 40 m coming to rest inverted A fire broke out and the residents of the village came to aid 2 3 attempting to put the fire out with hand held extinguishers 1 All but one of the injured passengers were able to escape the wreckage Most of the injured or killed passengers were natives of Nome Gambell or Savoonga 4 Cause EditThe cause of the crash according to the NTSB was improper IFR Instrument flight rules operation failing to adhere to instrument approach procedures The airplane collided with a mountain on a missed approach to landing after multiple missed approaches The weather at the airport was unsafe for landing with a low ceiling and sea fog 1 5 References Edit a b c d Aircraft Accident Report Wien Air Alaska Inc Fairchild F 27B N4904 Gambell St Lawrence Island Alaska August 30 1975 PDF National Transportation Safety Board 7 January 1976 NTSB AAR 76 1 Copy at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University Propjet crashes in Alaska Lewiston Morning Tribune Idaho Associated Press 31 August 1975 p 2A Eskimo villagers rescue crash survivors Lewiston Morning Tribune Idaho Associated Press 1 September 1975 p 2A Beitler Stu 2 September 1975 Gambell AK Airliner Crashes into hillside Fairbanks News Miner Retrieved 16 January 2022 NTSB Identification DCA76AZ004 www ntsb gov National Transportation Safety Board DCA76AZ004 Retrieved 16 January 2022 External links EditAccident Description at the Aviation Safety Network Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Wien Air Alaska Flight 99 amp oldid 1177353568, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
