Bering Air Flight 445 Crash: Cessna 208B Caravan Icing and Overweight + Other Accidents
Max Trescott talks with co-host Rob Mark about the newly released docket on Bering Air Flight 445: a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan, N321BA, operating under Part 135, that crashed on February 16, 2025, near Nome, Alaska. The Preliminary Report is here. The Caravan was flying between Unalakleet and Nome (about 145 miles), with portions of the route 10–20 miles offshore—well outside gliding distance when down low and without life preservers or a raft aboard. While the airplane was level at 6,000 feet, ATC advised that Nome was temporarily closed for de-icing and expected to reopen about 15 minutes later. The aircraft was cleared down to 4,000 feet, leveled, and then airspeed began a steady decay (roughly 112 knots down through 99 knots). Data show an autopilot disconnect followed by a rapid drop in airspeed and altitude, ending with the final ADS-B point about 12 miles offshore over the Norton Sound at about 1,325 feet.
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Weight and loading controls are central themes. Preliminary calculations put the accident flight at about 9,776 pounds—roughly 969 pounds above the maximum takeoff weight for known or forecast icing operations using the TKS system. The conversation also explores the Alaska-specific weight rule (FAR 91.323) that can allow increased certificated weights for certain Part 135 operations, and why that carve-out still leaves operators and pilots doing razor-thin math when weather degrades performance. The docket discussion goes further, pointing to a pattern of overweight legs and fuel-quantity discrepancies between manifests and avionics fuel data—exactly the kind of systemic drift that can normalize “just a little heavy.”
The third leg of the stool is airspeed in ice. The show highlights how operators and pilots can get tangled in “minimum speed” numbers (for example, 95 knots guidance in the TKS supplement versus higher company minimums), and how a TKS-equipped Caravan can develop an undeserved “invincible in icing” reputation. The takeaway is blunt: when you combine heavy weight, icing, and slow airspeed, you’re building a stall-margin problem you may not be able to out-fly.
Epic E1000 N98FK: LNAV+V Trap Near Steamboat Springs
Max also briefly revisits the Epic E1000 crash of N98FK near Steamboat Springs, Colorado, during a night RNAV (GPS) approach. ADS-B suggests excellent lateral tracking but a stable descent on the advisory glidepath of an LNAV+V procedure—continuing below the MDA. In this case the MDA was 9,100 feet MSL (over 2,200 feet AGL). The warning is simple: LNAV+V can look almost identical to LPV on the PFD, but it’s still a non-precision approach—level at MDA until you have the required runway environment in sight, especially when terrain sits in the visual segment.
Lancair N163BR: Engine Failure, Drag, and a Parachute Save
A preliminary report covers an experimental Lancair IV-P, N163BR, that crashed near Savannah, Georgia, on November 13, 2025—yet both occupants survived. After a loud boom, sparks, and power loss at cruise, the pilot diverted, shut the engine down as symptoms worsened, and ultimately deployed the ballistic parachute, touching down on a golf course. Post-flight observations suggested internal engine components exited the engine case/cowling.
Cessna 182P N14YY: Fuel-Cap Venting and Loss of Control on Landing
A final report examines a Cessna 182P, N14YY, that crashed near Marks, Mississippi, on February 20, 2024 during a reposition flight from Texas toward Mississippi. The pilot twice experienced fuel-starvation symptoms after switching the selector from BOTH to LEFT, then diverted and made multiple unstable landing attempts before crashing off the runway edge. Investigators found the left Monarch fuel cap did not vent properly, consistent with restricted fuel flow from that tank—an obscure failure mode that can look like a fuel-system mystery if you don’t know to check the cap vents.
Bonanza A36 N347M: Door-Open Startle, Stall, and Overweight Loading
Finally, a turbocharged Beech A36 Bonanza, N347M, crashed near Lititz, Pennsylvania, on March 9, 2025 after the cabin door popped open shortly after takeoff. The pilot reduced power, attempted to return, and the airplane stalled/mushed in a low-altitude turn before impacting in a parking lot and striking vehicles; a post-crash fire consumed much of the airplane. The report also found the aircraft was about 500 pounds over maximum gross takeoff weight—shrinking stall margin at exactly the wrong moment.
Bottom line
Different airplanes, same recurring killers: overweight loading, degraded performance in ice, and distraction-driven airspeed loss. Fly the airplane first—and treat limitations as non-negotiable.