WILLOW, AK, USA
N30961
Piper PA-11
The seaplane struck a point of land during step taxi for takeoff. The pilot told the NTSB investigator-in-charge that he was taking off into the sun, and was partially blinded. He said he misjudged his location in the lake, and did not see the point of land in his takeoff path.
On September 9, 1998, at 0750 Alaska daylight time, a float equipped Piper PA-11 airplane sustained substantial damage when it struck terrain during the takeoff run from Honeybee Lake, two miles south of Willow, Alaska. The solo commercial pilot was not injured. The flight was operated under 14 CFR Part 91, as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan was filed. The pilot told two FAA inspectors who interviewed him at the accident site on September 9, and wrote in his NTSB Pilot / Operator report, that during step taxi for takeoff, while heading into the sun, the airplane struck a point of land extending into the lake. The pilot indicated that the point of land was in the shadow of some trees, and he was partially blinded by the sun. He said he misjudged the airplane's location in the lake. The airplane sustained damage to the floats and wing lift struts.
The pilot's selection of an unsuitable takeoff area from the lake. Factors were the obstruction (point of land) hidden in the glare from the rising sun.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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