CEN17LA283

The pilot's improper decision to attempt to take off after two previous failed attempts from choppy water with a high outside temperature and the airplane near its maximum gross weight, which degraded the airplane’s performance and resulted in its inability to maintain adequate airspeed and sustain a climb.

The commercial pilot was attempting to take off from a lake for an air tour flight with two passengers onboard. He noted that, after accelerating to get on step, it took "a bit longer than usual" to do so due to a high outside air temperature and choppy water conditions, which he realized could affect the airplane's performance. The airplane hit some waves just before reaching a takeoff speed about 45 mph, lifted off briefly, settled back down, and bounced twice. All indications appeared normal, and the airplane began to climb, but the pilot did not "feel" the usual acceleration after the airplane lifted off the water. Once the airplane was flying in ground effect, the pilot leveled it off a little to increase the airspeed, but the airspeed did not increase. After reaching between about 25 and 35 ft above the water, the airplane began descending, and it could not maintain altitude or airspeed. The pilot pitched the airplane's nose down a little to increase the airspeed, but the airspeed did not substantially increase, and the airplane began descending faster. The airplane's left pontoon impacted the water, which collapsed and then contacted the rotating propeller. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The Airplane Flying Handbook stated, in part, that, "under conditions of …high temperature, and/or maximum gross weight, the airplane may be able to lift off but will be unable to climb out of ground effect." After the accident and upon request, the pilot provided the Federal Aviation Administration investigator weight and balance calculations for the accident flight, which showed that the airplane was either at or above its maximum gross weight. This in conjunction with the high outside air temperature likely degraded the airplane's performance, which prevented it from being able to sustain a climb. The pilot was aware that such conditions could affect the airplane's performance and should not have attempted to take off.

Post-accident examination of the airplane confirmed flight control continuity from the control surfaces to the cockpit controls. The float gear handle was in the water position. The water rudders were in the up position. The tachometer indicated 21,940 hours. Examination of the pilot's seat revealed it was latched, secure, and in place. Cockpit throttle, mixture, and propeller control continuity was confirmed. Both propeller blades had chordwise gouging and leading edge semi-circular deformations consistent with rotational impact. The engine air intake was unobstructed. Borescope examination of the cylinders showed evidence of corrosion consistent with water immersion. The top spark plugs exhibited similar corrosion features and did not display carbon fouling. Hand rotation of the propeller confirmed drive and valve train continuity to the rear accessory case, and thumb compression through the top spark plug holes was confirmed during rotation. During the propeller rotation, the left magneto produced a sound consistent with a repetitive actuation of its impulse coupling, and no spark was produced through the ignition harness, which was secured to magneto terminal leads. The magnetos were removed and did not spark when the magnetos were rotated by hand. Both magnetos had internal corrosion consistent with water immersion. After both magnetos' contact points were cleaned, the magnetos were bench tested and produced a spark in correct firing order across a 4 mm air gap. The inlet line to the carburetor contained water, and the carburetor screen did not contain debris. A J.P. Instruments EDM-700 and a J.P. Instruments FS-450 cockpit display were removed and sent to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Vehicle Recorder Division for download of nonvolatile memory. The accident airplane was a 1955 Cessna 180 equipped with a Continental O-470-J1, serial number 45344-5-J, engine. Up Above Austin LLC had a Letter of Authorization (LOA) under Part 91.147, effective December 21, 2016, that was authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration for the operator to operate three aircraft for commercial air tour operations, which were: Cessna 172RG, N9593B; Cessna 180, N3119D; Cessna 182R, N3665C. The LOA listed the pilot as responsible for business management and aircraft maintenance. At the time of certification of the 1955 Cessna 180, the airplane was not required to be equipped with shoulder harnesses. Both front seats had shoulder harness installations. The rear seats were not equipped with shoulder harnesses. The pilot seat had components of a secondary stop installation, in which the inertia reel was installed into the airplane frame and not into the airplane structure. Cessna's Single Engine Service Bulletin SEB07-5 Revision 6, Pilot and Copilot Secondary Seat Stop Installation specifies that the inertia reel is to be secured to the airplane structure. The purpose of SEB07-5 was to assist in preventing uncommanded rearward movement of the pilot and copilot seats. The installation was designed to assist in providing an additional margin of safety by limiting the aft travel of the seat should the primary seat latch pin(s) not be properly engaged in the seat rail/track. In certain instances, seat slippage could result in some pilots not being able to reach all the controls and/or subsequently losing control of the airplane. The FAA inspector stated the airplane records did not have a weight and balance form. A review of the airplane logbook revealed a maintenance entry by the pilot, dated April 5, 2017, listed the airplane empty weight as 2,221 lbs. and a center of gravity of 38.13 inches. The FAA inspector requested, and the pilot provided weight and balance calculations of the accident flight following the accident using a cell phone app. The pilot stated that there was approximately 18 gallons of fuel aboard. He said that he asked the passengers their weights, which they said were 140 lbs. and 200 lbs. The pilot used 180 lbs. for his weight his weight and balance calculations showed that empty weight was 2,221 lbs., the takeoff weight was 2,849 lbs., and the gross weight was 2,850 lbs. The front seat passenger stated that the pilot never asked for their weights. The passenger stated she weighed 150 lbs., and her husband weighed 200-205 lbs. On July 22, 2017, at 1735 central daylight time, a Cessna 180, N3119D, did not attain/maintain a positive climb rate during initial climb from Lake Travis near Austin, Texas. The float-equipped airplane descended and impacted Lake Travis, nosed-over, and sank. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The commercial pilot was uninjured, and the two passengers sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated by Up Above Austin LLC under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as an air tour flight that was not operating on a flight plan. Day visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident for the local flight that was originating at the time of the accident. One of the passengers stated that she reserved the 30-minute air tour flight for her and her husband's anniversary. She stated that she learned of the operator from an internet search she performed and "looked at the reviews" about the operator. She said there was another air tour operator in the Austin, Texas area but that operator did not have seaplanes. She said the pilot did not provide a briefing on the use of the seatbelts or the airplane door, but he did brief them how to use the life jackets/vests. She said the pilot told them "you won't need [life vests], it goes over your shoulder and just pull on the yellow piece." She said they were wearing their life vests for the flight. The pilot stated that he performed a preflight inspection of the airplane before the air tour flight for the two passengers with one passenger seated in the front right seat and the second passenger seated in the rear right seat. The pilot stated that he briefed them how to put the life vests on and their use outside of the airplane. He said the during the taxi out he briefed the passengers on emergency procedures (how to open doors, use the seatbelts, life vest, etc.). The pilot said he set the wing flaps to 20 degrees for takeoff. He said the outside air temperature was 100 degrees and winds were about 10-15 knots, which favored a southeast departure. He expected an airplane performance reduction due to the outside air temperature. He said the lake condition was choppy from boats on the lake. He said that it took "a bit longer than usual" to get on the step due to the outside air temperature and the "roughness" of the lake as the airplane bounced through the choppiness. He said the airplane hit a couple of waves just before getting to a take-off speed of about 45 mph, lifted off for a moment then settled back down, and bounced a couple of times. He said all indications appeared normal, and the airplane began to climb, but he did not feel the usual acceleration after leaving the water. The pilot said that once the airplane was flying in ground effect, he levelled the airplane a little to allow the airspeed to increase, but the airspeed did not increase. About 25-35 feet above the water, the airplane began to descend, and it could not maintain airplane altitude or airspeed. The pilot pitched the nose down a little to increase airspeed, but there was no substantial increase in airspeed, and the airplane descended faster. The pilot began looking for a landing path and saw a pontoon boat converging on the flight path from the right, so turned the airplane away from the boat to the left, and the plane quickly began to descend. The airplane struck the water with the left pontoon, which collapsed and contacted the rotating propeller. The pilot shut the engine down, and the airplane began to list to the left. The left wing tip was in the water, and the pontoon had a large hole. The pilot stated that he instructed the p