854

54-1708

N5342G

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• 54-1708 US Army # 1551. L-20 No. 552. Command A-6. Delivered -1956. Built as L-20A and re-designated U-6A in 1962.

• 54-1708 US Army Reserve. Circa 1970. (See photo on file).

• N5342G Civil Air Patrol, Maxwell AFB, AL. Operated in California and also  at Anchorage, AK. Regd Sep-1976.

Accident: Six Mile Lake, Elmendorf AFB. Alaska. 09-Aug-1987. During a training assignment the instructor (cfi) elected to demonstrate a no-flap takeoff with calm/glassy water conditions. After the float plane had accelerated to about 55 to 60 kts without becoming airborne, he elected to abort the takeoff. He stated that he attempted a left turn & the float plane settled off step, but the forward momentum caused the aircraft to continue straight ahead. He called for 'rudders,' meaning water rudders, but the student reacted by assisting in applying normal rudder. The water rudder handle was located at the lower left corner of the instrument panel & was not accessible to the instructor, who was in the right seat. Subsequently, the float plane impacted an embankment with the engine shut down at an estimated speed of 7 to 10 kts. The instructor stated that he should have called for “water rudders”. Pilot student and a passenger uninjured. NTSB report ANC87FA118.

Note: Total airframe hours at Aug 1987 – 6,929 hours.

• N5342G Alaska Air Patrol, Anchorage, AK. Dates unknown.

Total time: 7,960 hours at Sept-1995.

Accident: 10 mi. from Kenai. 20-Feb-2009. The certificated flight instructor was familiarizing the second pilot with ski operations in a ski-equipped airplane during an instructional flight. The flight instructor reported that he took the flight controls from the second pilot to demonstrate a touch-and-go landing on a frozen, snow-covered lake. After landing to the east, the instructor said that he kept the tail of the airplane up and the airspeed just below flying speed in order to make ski tracks on the lake to check the snow conditions. About midway along the lake the instructor added full engine power and the airplane became airborne but failed to climb sufficiently to avoid colliding with an area of rising, tree-covered terrain at the departure end of the lake. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wings, fuselage, and empennage. Post accident examination revealed no pre-accident mechanical anomalies. The instructor noted that after the accident he noticed occasional strong gusts of wind from the west. Substantial damage. Two crew members uninjured. NTSB report ANC09LA022.

Total time at Feb-2009 – 9,483 hours.