Accidents
NTSB: Elevator Actuator Trim Jack Separated in Fatal Otter Accident
Investigators found the reason a DHC-3 Turbine Otter crashed into Mutiny Bay in Washington.
NTSB examination of the elevator actuator trim jack of a DHC-3 Turbine Otter that crashed on Sept. 4, 2022, found that the assembly became unthreaded before the aircraft accident. All 10 aboard the turboprop single died in the mishap. (Photo: NTSB)
NTSB examination of the elevator actuator trim jack of a DHC-3 Turbine Otter that crashed on Sept. 4, 2022, found that the assembly became unthreaded before the aircraft accident. All 10 aboard the turboprop single died in the mishap. (Photo: NTSB)

A newly released National Transportation Safety Board update notes that investigators have identified a possible “safety concern” with the horizontal stabilizer of the float-equipped De Havilland Canada DHC-3 Turbine Otter that plunged nose down into Mutiny Bay, Washington, on September 4. The pilot and nine passengers died in the crash.