Lake Clark Air plane damaged after hitting chunk of ice on Chignik Lagoon runway

Chignik Lagoon. July 10, 2019. (Alex Hager/KDLG)

A passenger plane was damaged after it landed and hit a chunk of ice and frozen gravel on the Chignik Lagoon runway last week. No injuries were reported.

Lake Clark Air operates the Beechcraft C-99 turboprop airliner.

The company’s chief pilot, Glen Alsworth, Jr., said the plane left Merrill Field Airport in Anchorage with a load of passengers and landed in Chignik Lagoon shortly after 10 a.m. on April 16.

“Had an uneventful landing, beautiful weather, no mechanical issues, very light winds,” he said.

Alsworth said the plane slowed down and was preparing to turn off the runway.

“There was a chunk of frozen ice and gravel that was not visible to the pilot, kind of right out in the middle of the runway there, until he was right on top of it, and the right main gear hit that and broke the right main gear, so the plane tipped down on its right wing,” he said.

The plane can hold up to nine passengers. Alsworth didn’t say how many people were on the plane at the time.

Alsworth said they won’t know the extent of the damage to the plane until they begin repairs.

“Anytime the plane tips down on its wing like that, it’s going to do damage to the prop on that side, and of course the landing gear if the flaps were down. So it would have got that flap as well,” he said.

He said the insurance company will examine the plane before they start repairs.

KDLG - Dillingham

KDLG is our partner station in Dillingham. KTOO collaborates with partners across the state to cover important news and to share stories with our audiences.

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