1970 07/03 AK 5-Fatality -DC3

Incident Name: a fire near Galena, Alaska (64.733333, -156.927500 for Galena)
Date: 7/3/1970, 1400 hrs
Personnel: 5 lives lost, 14 injured
Age:
Agency/Organization: Reeder Flying Service of Twin Falls, ID; under contract with the Bureau of Land Management
Position: aerial firefighters

Summary:

Those killed:

Gregory Pete, BLM Alaska Fire Service, firefighter

Edwig Pete, BLM Alaska Fire Service, firefighter

Cyril James Pete, BLM Alaska Fire Service, firefighter

Micheal Benna, BLM Alaska Fire Service, co-pilot, age 45

Roy Kirk, BLM Alaska Fire Service, firefighter

Four BLM Firefighters and the aircraft Co-Pilot were killed when their overloaded DC-3 had an engine failure and crashed during takeoff from the airport in McGrath, Alaska. Twenty two of the people on board survived but 14 were seriously injured.

The following is from Larry Adams, Regional Fuels Management Specialist, BIA, Anchorage – Larry worked as a smokejumper in the early 70s was a helitack foreman out of ANC-BLM in 1974. Larry was able to confirm the following:

On July 3rd, 1970, a twin-engine DC-3 aircraft owned and operated by Reeder Flying Service of Twin Falls, Idaho, crashed and burned shortly after take-off from a runway in McGrath, AK. The aircraft was carrying twenty-five Bureau of Land Management forest firefighters, their firefighting equipment, and a crew of two. Co-pilot Michael Benna and four passengers were killed, fourteen other passengers were injured.

Maps

crashed and burned shortly after take-off from a runway in McGrath, AK

{mosmap lat=’62.951366’|lon=’-155.610968’|marker=’0’|text=’runway at McGrath, AK’}

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Reports, Documentation, Lessons Learned

Concise Information from the NTSB, FAA, AAP and research by the WLF Staff:
- 7/3/1970, 1400 hrs
- 5 killedGregory Pete, BLM Alaska Fire Service, firefighter, age 32
  Edwig Pete, BLM Alaska Fire Service, firefighter, age 30
  
  Cyril James Pete, BLM Alaska Fire Service, firefighter, age 28
  
  Micheal Benna, BLM Alaska Fire Service, co-pilot
  
  Roy Kirk, BLM Alaska Fire Service, firefighter, age 67
- Operator: Reeder Flying Service of Twin Falls, ID
- DOUGLAS DC-3
- Location: just off runway near McGrath, AK
- FAA Registration N154R
- NTSB # ANC71AA0001
National Transportation Safety Board: Probable Cause (html)Type of Accident:
Collision with ground/water: controlled

Phase of Operation

Takeoff: Initial climb

Collided with: trees

Probable Cause(s)

Pilot in Command – diverted attention from operation of aircraft

Terrain – high obstructions

Fire after impact

Remarks – Plt rotated V2, reduced pwr, co-plt raised gr.acft obsd on rwy r gr retracting, prop hit rnway.
NTSB brief:
For more information consult the NTSB online lookup Utility Use NTSB Identification: ANC71AA001
Early news about the crash; more lives were lost than first reported.
US Social Security Death Index: Harry Pete | Johnny Pete | Cyril Pete | Michael Benna | Roy Kirk