Accident description
languages:
| Status: | Preliminary - official |
| Date: | 11 AUG 2009 |
| Time: | ca 11:15 |
| Type: | de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300 |
| Operator: | Airlines PNG |
| Registration: | P2-MCB |
| C/n / msn: | 441 |
| First flight: | 1975 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 46700 |
| Engines: | 2 Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-27 |
| Crew: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Passengers: | Fatalities: 11 / Occupants: 11 |
| Total: | Fatalities: 13 / Occupants: 13 |
| Airplane damage: | Destroyed |
| Airplane fate: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
| Location: | 11 km (6.9 mls) SSE of Kokoda Airport (KKD) (Papua New Guinea)
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| Phase: | En route (ENR) |
| Nature: | Domestic Scheduled Passenger |
| Departure airport: | Port Moresby-Jackson Field (POM/AYPY), Papua New Guinea |
| Kokoda Airport (KKD), Papua New Guinea | |
| Flightnumber: | 4684 |
An Airlines PNG DHC-6 Twin Otter passenger plane was destroyed when it flew into a mountainside near Kokoda Airport (KKD), killing all 13 on board. Flight CG 4684 departed Port Moresby-Jackson Field (POM) at 10:53. The Area Weather Forecast (ARFOR) for the intended flight indicated forecasts of isolated showers and thunderstorms with areas of rain. Significant cloud layers at estimated base levels of 800ft with tops of 18,000ft above Mean Sea Level (MSL). Isolated Cumulo Nimbus (CB) or thunderstorm clouds was also forecasted reaching to tops of 45000 ft. Freezing levels was estimated at 15,500 ft above MSL with moderate to severe turbulence within the vicinity of the CB and cumuliform clouds.
At 11:10, the flight crew of P2-MCB reported leaving 9,000 ft on descent to Kokoda via the Kokoda Gap, which is approximately 12 NM (22 km) south-east of the Kokoda airstrip. This was the last radio contact with the flight.
The airplane flew into the side of a tree covered mountain at an altitude of 5774 feet (1760 metres).
The Kokoda Airport is located in a valley at an elevation of 1273 feet, surrounded by mountains in the North and South, some with an elevation of 8500 feet.
The airfield has a single runway, 17/35. It has a 2,2% down slope with landings restricted to runway 17.
Events:
Sources:
» Kokoda Track charter plane missing: 9 Australians on board (SMH, 11-8-2009)
» Airlines of PNG Twin Otter disappears in Papua New Guinea (Flightglobal, 11-8-2009)
Official accident investigation report
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Photos
C-GNHB was sold to Papua New Guinea in 1997 as P2-MCB
C-GNHB was sold to Papua New Guinea in 1997 as P2-MCB
Aircraft history
| date | registration | operator | remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 DEC 1974 | C-GNHB | On Air, operating for NorOntair | registered |
| 03 JAN 1984 | C-GNHB | Bearskin Airlines, operating for NorOntair | On Air taken over by Bearskin |
| 22 MAY 1986 | C-GNHB | Dale-Air, operating for NorOntair | registered |
| 27 MAY 1992 | C-GNHB | Bearskin Airlines, operating for NorOntair | registered |
| 03 SEP 1993 | C-GNHB | Dale-Air, operating for NorOntair | registered |
| 29 JAN 1997 | P2-MCB | Milne Bay Air | registered |
| 2001 | P2-MCB | Airlines PNG | airline renamed |
Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Port Moresby-Jackson Field (POM/AYPY) to Kokoda Airport (KKD) as the crow flies is 83 km (52 miles).
This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.
Distance from Port Moresby-Jackson Field (POM/AYPY) to Kokoda Airport (KKD) as the crow flies is 83 km (52 miles).
