NTSB: Pilot circled runway, couldn't land before fatal Nome plane crash

The Wasilla pilot who died in a plane crash near Nome last week made several attempts to land on a snow-covered runway before his aircraft went down on sea ice east of the city, according to a preliminary report from federal investigators.

The National Transportation Safety Board's preliminary report on the late-night March 5 wreck that killed 28-year-old Thomas Grainger was released Monday. Searchers found his wheel-equipped Cessna 172K the morning after the crash about 10 miles east of Nome. Investigators said he had flown nonstop from Wasilla, then tried to touch down at the Nome City Field Airport — a gravel runway about a mile from the larger Nome Airport — before turning back east, away from the city.

Grainger's fiancee, who reported him overdue early March 6, told the NTSB that he had flown from Wasilla to Nome about 20 times "but usually in summer," the report said. It wasn't immediately clear Wednesday if Grainger had previously made the trip in winter.

Just before Grainger took off from the Wasilla Airport at 5:10 p.m. March 5, she told investigators, she saw him pumping fuel into the plane and two fuel containers he put on board — just over 35 gallons in total, according to purchase records.

"The actual fuel quantity for this flight is unknown," investigators wrote.

Noreen Price, the NTSB investigator looking into the crash, said Wednesday that fuel was one of several elements under consideration as part of the pilot, mechanical and weather factors examined in every crash.

There was no evidence at the scene that the fuel in the containers aboard the plane was being "jury-rigged" to feed the engine midflight, she said.

"Nobody knew what his plans for those cans was," Price said, noting that some of the witnesses interviewed "believe he may have planned to use them if he needed to divert somewhere."

The report also noted that Grainger was restricted from "night flying or color signal control" by his Federal Aviation Administration medical certificate.

"His medical certificate said that he was restricted from night flying because he was colorblind, so he should not have been making a night flight," Price said.

According to the report, Grainger planned to visit friends in Nome. He was flying using visual flight rules, but "instrument meteorological conditions" prevailed when he reached Nome. Grainger had planned to land at the less frequently maintained of Nome's two airports, based on FAA data cited by the NTSB.

"Nome City Field Airport has no lighting and is not plowed in winter," investigators wrote. "About one mile to the west is Nome Airport, which does have runway and approach lighting and is fully maintained."

Price said the Nome City Field runway was "covered in snow" when she visited to investigate the crash.

Before Grainger tried to land, a friend texted him that the weather was "10 miles 600 over" — which Price said meant 10 miles visibility, but overcast with clouds at an altitude of 600 feet. A weather report from the Nome Airport about 20 minutes before the crash listed conditions as visibility of 10 miles and overcast clouds at 400 feet.

"(Grainger) texted back 'Ok I think I can sneak in,' then he proceeded to make four visual approaches to City Field runway 21, as well as circling maneuvers in the area," investigators wrote. "He texted 'one more try' and after he couldn't land, he texted 'one more ok' before his last attempt. At (10:14 p.m.) he texted 'not happening' and departed the area."

Nome Search and Rescue searchers found the Cessna nose-down on the ice, on the morning of March 6.

Price said troopers were able to recover the Cessna's GPS receiver, and data from it showed that the plane had flown a total of 596 statute miles.

The NTSB is still trying to determine the plane's potential range when it left Wasilla.

"The range is very dependent on the power setting that the pilot used, and at this time we don't have that information," Price said. "We really don't know how much fuel he had on board or how he operated the engine."

The NTSB hopes to examine the rest of the "badly damaged" instruments once the plane is recovered, Price said. The plane was still out on the ice as of Wednesday morning, according to Price.