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Pilots were concerned about seaplane that crashed

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published June 23, 2006

MIAMI - The vintage Chalk's Ocean Airways seaplane that crashed last year had several major repairs to the wing that separated just after takeoff on the fatal flight, and many pilots had grown concerned about maintenance overall, federal investigators said Thursday.

Three Chalk's captains became so worried in 2004 that they quit, according to documents released by the National Transportation Safety Board about the Dec. 19 crash off Miami Beach that killed all 20 on board.

"There was a widespread perception that pilot complaints were not properly addressed by maintenance and that it was often necessary to write up the same problem repeatedly until it was fixed," investigators quoted a Chalk's pilot, Robert Lutz, as saying.

One of the pilots who quit, Grady Washatka, said in a resignation letter released by the board that there was "blatant neglect" in many maintenance areas, including engine problems, corrosion and cracks and issues with the airplanes' weight.

"We love this company and we are trying to avoid the inevitable disaster that will ensue if these issues are not addressed," he wrote on Jan. 13, 2005.

Mark Marks, husband of the fatal flight's captain, Michele Marks, told investigators his wife often complained about maintenance.

"Michele was becoming scared," he said.

Other pilots, however, said maintenance had improved since 2004 and that the plane that crashed appeared to be in good shape a few days earlier. Chalk's chief pilot, Erik Larsen, told investigators that "things are getting better" in maintenance.

The documents do not say what caused the 58-year-old Grumman G-73T Turbo Mallard to crash en route to Bimini, Bahamas. Investigators found fatigue cracks in supports of the right wing that came off just after the seaplane took off and similar cracks in left wing structures.

The reports said the roots of both wings on the airplane had several fuel leaks in 2005, and pilots frequently described an "elevator flutter" or vibration. In November, these vibrations were noted in writing nine times, the board found. In some cases, poor or no records were kept and maintenance procedures were not followed, the report said.

The seaplane had flown a total of 31,011 hours before it crashed, with its last major structural overhaul coming on Oct. 7, 2005, the board found. It was found to be in compliance with Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness directives.

[Last modified June 23, 2006, 00:57:11]