Widerøe Flight 839

Widerøe Flight 839, also known as the Værøy Accident (Værøy-ulykken), was a de Havilland Canada Twin Otter that crashed shortly after takeoff from Værøy Airport in Værøy Municipality in Lofoten, Norway. The accident occurred on 12 April 1990 at 14:44, killing all five people on board. The cause of the accident was strong winds that exceeded the structure's tolerance, causing the tail rudder and tailplane to crack and the aircraft to become uncontrollable. Impact occurred 63 seconds after takeoff and 8 seconds after the crack. The aircraft crashed into the water and a search was conducted for several days to locate the wreckage.

Uneven and strong winds had given the airport low regularity, and prior to takeoff, wind speeds of 57 kn had been recorded. As a result of the accident, the airport was permanently closed and replaced by Værøy Heliport. The incident was investigated by the Norwegian Accident Investigation Board, which published its conclusions in 1991, including a finding that the pilot should not have landed with the amounts of wind that were reported, and definitively should not have taken off with winds above tolerance levels. Three years later, a new investigation was conducted, after an engineer had stated that the cause of the accident could have been fatigue instead. The second investigation came to the same conclusion as the first, and all the parties involved have since supported the causes stated in the initial report.

Accident

Widerøe Flight 839 was a scheduled flight from Værøy Airport to Bodø Airport operated by a de Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otter. The aircraft left Bodø Airport at 13:36 as Flight 838 to Røst Airport, where it landed at 14:04. It continued to Værøy as Flight 839, leaving Røst at 14:14. During this flight the crew received information that the wind at the east end of the runway was from 270°, varying from 18 to 26 kn — a moderate gale. When the plane landed at 14:30, the tower had stated that the wind was from 270° and max 23 kn. The crew commented on the wind after landing and stated that the wind blew from all directions. At Værøy Airport, three passengers disembarked, two passengers boarded, and the plane fueled. There was also a passenger in transit from Røst to Bodø, so the total ridership was three passengers, plus the two pilots. Take-off weight was 4548.5 kg, including 640 kg of fuel.

The aircraft taxied to runway 25. During the departure briefing, the captain decided not to follow the company's standard procedure and have a climb at 320° instead of 280°. Maximum measured wind had been recorded at 57 kn while the aircraft had been parked. The aircraft asked for clearance at 14:42:10; this was granted, and the air control informed that the wind at the west end was between 210° and 290°, varying from 18 to 34 kn. The eastern wind was not communicated to the aircraft, but was 270°, varying from 20 to 40 kn. The take-off started at 14:42:43 and the aircraft was airborne after having passed half the runway. Witnesses described that the aircraft after take-off climbed quickly, but then started falling, and then climbed quickly again. It then entered clouds west of the airport. During climb, the captain wanted to keep the flaps at 10°, contradictory to standard procedure that involved decreasing the flaps. At 14:43:09, a rattling sound was registered on the cockpit voice recorder (CVR). Thirty-five seconds later, sounds from unsynchronized propellers were registered. The first officer indicated that the flight was in difficulty. Eight seconds later, at 14:43:52, the CVR stopped recording. At 14:43:54, the control tower at Værøy registered a distress signal, that lasted four seconds, followed by a loud bang. The aircraft was then repeatedly called by radio. At 14:50, Bodø Air Traffic Control Center was contacted.

The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre of Northern Norway in Bodø dispatched two helicopters and two ships, but one helicopter and one ship had to return due to bad weather. At 16:45, parts of the aircraft were found 3.5 nmi northwest of Værøy Airport. After the weather improved, one rescue ship, four fishing vessels and one Westland Sea King were used to find the wreck. On 13 April, twelve ships and two helicopters were being used, and several parts from the wreck were found. This allowed the search crew to use divers to search for the wreck. The aircraft was found on 15 April, 2300 m from the airport. Eighty percent of the wreck was found within an area of 300 by 400 m and at about 10 m depth. All occupants died immediately upon impact, and the bodies of the passengers and first officer were recovered; the captain's body was never found.