Bering Air Cessna Caravan departed overweight before fatal accident: NTSB

The National Transport Safety Bureau (NTSB) has issued a preliminary report into the fatal accident involving a Bering Air Cessna  208B Caravan registered N321BA, which crashed in a remote part of Alaska on February 6, 2025, operating flight number 445. The wreckage of the airplane was found two days after the crash in which all nine passengers and the sole pilot lost their lives.

The report summarizes that the aircraft was significantly overweight when it departed on the fatal leg from Unalakleet Airport (UNK) heading to Nome Airport (OME). This, combined with known icing conditions in the region at the time, severely impaired the aircraft’s ability to fly and maintain a safe airspeed, leading to a stall that the pilot was unable to recover from.

According to the NTSB report, the flight departed from Unalakleet Airport at 14:37 local time, heading to Nome Airport where it was due to land at 15:35. As the aircraft approached Nome, air traffic controllers informed the pilot of flight 445 that Nome’s runway was being de-iced and was temporarily closed, and that flight 445 could expect a 10 to 15 minute delay in landing clearance to be given. The controller suggested to the pilot of flight 445 that he slow his aircraft down to minimize the delay in landing once overhead Nome.

MediaGuy768 / Wikimedia CommonsFollowing this transmission, automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) radar data analyzed by the NTSB shows that the aircraft continue to maintain its assigned cruising altitude of 8,000ft (2,400m) toward Nome. At 14:56 the aircraft was cleared to descend to 6,000ft (1,800m) and it was noted that the aircraft’s airspeed began decreasing. Indications show that its speed dropped from around 160 knots to 110 knots. The aircraft leveled off at 6,000 ft before being cleared to descend further to 4,000ft (1,200m) as it approached Nome.

About that time, the airplane’s airspeed began to decrease and was accompanied by a reduction in engine power. At about 15:15, the airplane leveled at 6,000 ft. About 15 seconds later, the airspeed reached about 110 knots; however, it increased to about 120 knots about 2 minutes later. At 15:16, the controller instructed the pilot to descend and maintain 4,000 ft at the pilot’s discretion, and the pilot acknowledged. Shortly afterward, the airplane began to descend.

At about 15:19, the airplane leveled at 4,000ft and the engine power started to gradually increase. The airplane’s airspeed was around 112 knots but was observed to be falling. At 15:19, the autopilot disengaged, possibly due to it being unable to keep control of the aircraft at such as low speed. At that time, the airplane’s airspeed was 99 knots.

About 19 seconds later, the airspeed had decreased to about 70 knots, and the altitude was about 3,100 ft msl which was when the radar data was discontinued. The final ADS-B data point for flight 445 was recorded at 15:20 and at an approximate location around 32 miles (52km) east of Nome and about 12 miles (20km) offshore over Norton Sound. The airplane’s altitude associated with that data point was 1,325ft (397m). Final attempts made by air traffic controllers to establish contact with the pilot of flight 445 went unanswered. The final satellite data for the flight indicated the aircraft at just 200ft (60m) above sea level.

NTSBWreckage analysis

The wreckage of N321BA was discovered by investigators on a large, moving ice pack in Norton Sound. Investigators observed the accumulation of minor icing on some of the aircraft’s leading edge surfaces, while more significant icing was found at the base of the vertical stabilizer’s beacon light.

NTSBThe airplane came to rest upright. The propeller assembly separated from the engine and was located adjacent to the wreckage. The engine cowling was dislocated and fragmented. The engine remained secured to the mount; however, both the engine assembly and the mount were damaged consistent with impact forces. The fuselage exhibited upward crushing damage along the entire length.

Both wings were damaged, with the left wing being partially separated from the fuselage. Both wings exhibited leading-edge crushing damage along the entire spans. The outboard portion of the right wing was rotated aft and partially separated. An initial airframe examination revealed no evidence of an in-flight structural failure.

Summary

According to Bering Air’s load manifest for flight 445, the baggage and cargo weighed about 709 lbs before it departed from Unalakleet Airport, with a gross take-off weight of 9,865 lbs (4,475kg). This value is around 1,058 lbs (480kg) over the maximum take-off gross weight for the aircraft type flight operating in known or forecast icing conditions. It also surpassed the absolute maximum take-off weight for the Cessna 208B by approximately 803 lbs (365kg).  

While the aircraft’s maintenance records and pilot qualifications have all been checked by the NTSB and found to be in order, the NTSB will now focus on just how the aircraft was permitted to depart on its fatal sector so significantly overweight. With the aircraft already exceeding the maximum weight permitted in icing conditions, any accumulation of ice on the airframe would have severely impeded the aircraft’s ability to maintain safe flight, as appears to be the case here.

NTSBWhile the results of detailed examinations of the airframe, engine, and propeller are pending, the NTSB will also be focussing on the ground operations practices at Bering Air to discover how flight 445 was despatched from Unalakleet Airport in such an unsafe condition.

The accident was Bering Air’s first fatal crash since 1987, when the pilot of a cargo flight died near Ambler, Alaska,  according to the Federal Aviation Administration database. It was also Alaska’s deadliest air accident since 2013 when ten people died when a Rediske Air De Havilland Twin Otter crashed while operating a bear-spotting charter flight, also due to suspected overloading.  

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