Narsarsuaq

For unknown reasons, the twin engine aircraft made a wheels up landing at Narsarsuaq Airport and came to rest. Both pilots escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. They were completing a flight from Goose Bay. The exact date of the occurrence remains unknown, somewhere in January 2007.

The flight, during which the accident occurred, was part of a non-scheduled international cargo flight from Gdansk (EPGD) to Louisville (KSDF). The flight crew had previously on August 4, 2001, on another charter flight, flown the aircraft from Hanover (EDDV) to Palma de Mallorca (LEPA) and then to EPGD in order to bring the aircraft in position for the cargo flight. The flight was chartered by a cargo courier to depart EPGD at 2000 hrs on August 4, 2001, and arrive at KSDF at 0900 hrs on August 5, 2001. Technical landings (fuel uplift) were planned at EKCH in Denmark, at Keflavik (BIKF) in Iceland, at BGBW in Greenland and at Sept-Iles (CYZV) in Canada. The aircraft had a two hour delay at LEPA due to a slot time. For that reason, the aircraft did not arrive at EPGD until 2106 hrs. The aircraft was refuelled and the flight crew loaded the cargo themselves. The aircraft departed EPGD at 2218 hrs and arrived at EKCH at 2238 hrs. Then the aircraft departed EKCH at 2313 hrs and arrived at BIKF at 0202 hrs. At BIKF, the aircraft was refuelled with 1034 USG of JET A1. The commander filed an ATC flight plan for BGBW with Kangerlussuaq (BGSF) in Greenland as destination alternate. At BIKF no weather reports for BGBW were valid for the flight crew’s flight planning. The handling agent directed the Commander’s attention to the lack of updated weather reports for BGBW, but the Commander seemed not to be concerned. It was the general opinion of the handling agent that the Commander seemed stressed. At 0246 hrs, the flight crew requested start up and shortly after they got an ATC clearance to BGBW via EMBLA, 63N 30W, 62N 40W and NA at FL 240 with cruise Mach at 0.76. The aircraft departed BIKF at 0300 hrs and the flight crew got an ATC clearance with FL 260 as the final cruising level inbound BGBW. The First Officer was the pilot flying and the Commander was the pilot non-flying. At 0423:24 hrs, the Commander contacted Narsarsuaq Flight Information Service (FIS) on frequency 121.300 MHz. The Commander reported that they expected to be overhead NA (358 KHz) at 0438 hrs. At this time, the aircraft was cruising at FL 260 and was inbound NA on a magnetic track of 280° approximately 50 nm east of the aerodrome. Through link to Gander ATC, Narsarsuaq FIS cleared the aircraft to descend out of controlled airspace on QNH 1004 and to report FL 195 descending. The Commander was now the pilot flying and the First Officer was the pilot non-flying. The Commander had experience of flying to BGBW. The aircraft left FL 260, and at 0434:27 hrs, the First Officer reported that the aircraft was passing FL 195. Narsarsuaq FIS requested the flight crew to report 10 nm from the aerodrome. While descending, the flight crew made a briefing on the NDB/DME approach procedure to runway 07. At 0437:00 hrs, the First Officer reported that the aircraft was 10 NM from NA. Narsarsuaq FIS requested the flight crew to contact Narsarsuaq AFIS on frequency 119.100 MHz. At 0437:17 hrs, the flight crew was in contact with Narsarsuaq AFIS and the First Officer reported passing FL 130. The AFIS Operator reported that there was no reported traffic in the TIZ and that the flight crew could make an approach by their own discretion. The weather was reported to be a wind direction and speed of 080° at 24 knots, visibility 10 kilometres with broken clouds at 6000 feet and overcast at 9000 feet, light rain, temperature +14°C, dew point +3°C and the QNH 1004 hPa. At 0440:26 hrs and at 0440:52 hrs, one of the flight crewmembers made cockpit call outs of passing 6 nm and 8 nm respectively outbound from NA. At 0441:45 hrs, one of the flight crewmembers made a cockpit call out of the aircraft being on base. The Commander ordered the extension of the landing gear. With reference to the CVR read out, there were no audible flight crew call outs concerning the use of checklists, altitude checks and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) during the descent, the initial and the final approach phase. At 0442:29 hrs, the First Officer reported that the aircraft was on final to runway 07. The AFIS operator reported the threshold wind for runway 07 to be 070° at 22 knots gusting to 29 knots and the runway to be free. The AFIS operator made a visual scan of the approach sector, but he did not see the aircraft, as he normally would have, when an aircraft was established on final in dark night and under similar weather conditions. At approximately 0443:07 hrs, the aircraft impacted in landing configuration mountainous terrain at approximately 700 feet msl. The accident occurred 4.5 nm southwest of the aerodrome. On the CVR read out, there were no audible flight crew call outs immediately before the impact. Several times from 0452 hrs until 0459 hrs, Narsarsuaq AFIS tried to get in radio contact with the aircraft, but there was no reply.

The pilot, sole on board, was completing a delivery flight from Europe to the US via Iceland and Greenland. Eight minutes after her departure from Reykjavik Airport, outbound to Narsarsuaq, the pilot informed ATC that her portable GPS fell on the ground and was not able to locate it. It such conditions, she decided to divert to Keflavik Airport when less than five minutes later, while descending, the right engine failed. For unknown reasons, she did not feather the propeller and did not elected to restart the engine. Due to drag and a loss of speed, the aircraft lost altitude and crashed near the village of Njarðvík, about 5 km east of Keflavik Airport. The aircraft was destroyed and the pilot was seriously injured.

Icing conditions forced the crew to descend from 9,000 feet to get below the clouds. The twin engine aircraft struck an ice sheet at a speed of 180 knots at a height of 5,125 feet. Cloud base was reported to be 3,000 feet with a wind at 7 knots from 7° and 10 km visibility in moderate rain. All three crew members survived the accident and were picked up by the Danish Navy in a Lynx helicopter. The departure airport of the ferry flight was Springfield Airport, MO (SGF) and the final destination was going to be Southend Municipal Airport (SEN), UK.

The CASA 212 was bought by Geoterrex in 1983 and registered in Canada in 1985. The plane had been extensively modified for aerial survey work. These modifications consisted of two probes mounted on the fuselage above the cockpit and extending 10 feet in front of the aircraft nose, a l6-foot tail boom, and two wing tip pylons. The probes, pylons, and tail boom served to support a wire loop antenna which ran around the aircraft. In July 1988 the plane was prepared for a ferry flight across the Atlantic to Nantes, France. For the purposes of this ferry trip, the survey loop antenna and the wing tip pylons had been removed and stowed in the main cabin area. For this configuration a special ferry permit was necessary, but the company did not apply for one. On July 31, 1988 the aircraft departed Ottawa and arrived at Goose Bay later that day. On 2 August 1988, the aircraft departed Goose Bay at 09:05 UTC and arrived at Narsarsuaq, Greenland at 12:50 UTC. The aircraft was refuelled and departed one hour later at 13:50 UTC for Reykjavik, Iceland, at a planned altitude of FL130. Although the pilot’s instrument rating had expired and the co-pilot did not possess one, the crew filed an IFR flight plan to Reykjavik. The weight of the aircraft was about 3,000 pounds above the maximum authorized takeoff weight on takeoff from Narsarsuaq. At Reykjavik, the crew flew an ILS approach to runway 20. During the approach, the flaps were set at approximately 25 degrees, 15 degrees above the approved maximum of 10 degrees. Approximately one-half mile from the runway threshold, the aircraft entered a steep turn to the right, and the nose of the aircraft dropped sharply. The aircraft continued to turn to the right through 270 degrees and descended rapidly until it struck the ground approximately 900 feet short of the runway threshold. The aircraft burst into flames shortly after impact.

The crew was cleared to descend from FL310 to 9,000 feet when the airplane struck the slope of an ice covered mountain located about 130 km northeast of Narsarsuaq. The wreckage was found at an altitude of about 2,630 meters and both pilots were killed. For unknown reasons, the airplane descended at an insufficient altitude to clear the obstacles.

The right main gear failed upon landing. The airplane veered to the left and came to rest. Both occupants were uninjured and the aircraft was not repaired.

Crashed in unknown circumstances into the North Atlantic Ocean while on a flight from Reykjavik to Narsarsuaq. No trace of the aircraft nor the three occupants was ever found.

While approaching Narsarsuaq on a flight from the US, the crew was forced to attempt an emergency landing for unknown reason. The aircraft crash landed and came to rest in a fjord located few km from the airport. Both occupants were rescued few hours later and were injured by negative temperatures. The aircraft was written off.

On final approach to Narsarsuaq Airport, the twin engine aircraft was too low and crashed few km short of runway. The pilot was injured and the aircraft was destroyed. He was supposed to deliver the aircraft to the US.