Oroville Lake Seaplane Base, Oroville, CA
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Oroville Lake Seaplane Base Today:
Airport
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Airport Area Accident History:
Accident occurred Saturday, August 21, 2004 in
Oroville, CA
Probable Cause Approval Date: 1/31/2006
Aircraft: Consolidated Aeronautics, Inc Lake
LA-4-200, registration: N1238L
Injuries: 2 Fatal.
The amphibious airplane collided with the
surface of a lake just after takeoff while
flying low over the glassy-surfaced water.
According to witnesses, the airplane was about
20 feet above the water and traveling about 70
miles per hour. Then, it "kissed" the surface,
abruptly climbed up about 50 feet, turned to the
left, and then descended into the water.
Post-accident examination of the airframe and
engine did not reveal any mechanical
malfunctions or anomalies. The airplane was
equipped with pontoons on each wing that were
secured to the wings using two forward brackets
and a smaller aft attachment. The left pontoon
was torn from the wing and located in the
floating debris field. The right wing pontoon's
aft attachment secured it to the wing; however,
the pontoon had rotated from its installation
position approximately 270 degrees and was lying
with its right side flush against the bottom
surface of the wing. The pontoon attach brackets
remained on the wing structure and were bent in
an inboard direction. The damage to the
airplane, and the right pontoon deformation, was
consistent with the right pontoon impacting the
water unevenly first, with the final impact
consistent with a nose and left wing down
attitude. The pilot had accumulated about 278
hours in seaplanes prior to the accident and had
last landed the airplane on water about 3 months
prior to the accident. The pilot's toxicology
report was positive for ephedrine and
pseudoephedrine which, would not have a negative
effect on the pilot's performance.
The National Transportation Safety Board
determines the probable cause(s) of this
accident as follows:
the pilot's failure to maintain clearance from
the water's surface, which resulted in his
dragging of the right wing pontoon during
low-altitude flight. The glassy-surfaced water
was a contributing factor to the accident.
Oroville Lake Seaplane Base
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