Mitsubishi MU-2B-36 accident near West Memphis, AR
On September 23, 2005, a Mitsubishi MU-2B-36 (airplane) was involved in an accident near West Memphis, AR. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- September 23, 2005
- Place
- West Memphis, AR
- Aircraft
- Mitsubishi MU-2B-36 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 35.192°N, 90.260°W
- NTSB ID
- 20050929X01550
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On September 22, 2005, at 1958 central daylight time, a Mitsubishi MU-2B-36, N103RC, operated by McNeely Charter Services, was destroyed when it impacted a 62,000-pound TS-14 earthmoving scrapper and terrain in a flat field near West Memphis, Arkansas. The airline transport pilot received fatal injuries. The 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 positioning flight departed the West Memphis Municipal Airport (AWM), West Memphis, Arkansas, about 1910. The intended destination airport was Lee Gilmer Memorial Airport (GVL), Gainesville, Georgia. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. An instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan was filed at 1856 with the Jonesboro, Arkansas, Automated Flight Service Station (AFSS). Radar track data indicated that the airplane departed AWM and proceeded eastward toward GVL. The airplane performed an en route climb to about 15,800 feet mean sea level (msl) before starting a descent. About 1932, about 62 nautical miles (nm) east of AWM, the pilot reported to Memphis Center that N103RC needed to change its destination airport. About 1933, the pilot reported that he needed to return to AWM. When Memphis Center questioned the pilot if N103RC was experiencing any problems, the pilot indicated that he was not, but that he needed to return to AWM to have something checked. The dispatch operator for McNeely Charter Services reported that she had received a telephone notification from Wilson Air, a fixed base operator in Memphis, Tennessee that N103RC was returning to AWM and would be back in about
Probable cause
The pilot's improper in-flight decision not to land at the departure runway or other available airports during the emergency descent, and his failure to maintain clearance from a vehicle and terrain. Contributing factors were a false engine fire warning light, inadequate maintenance by company personnel, a contaminated fire warning detection loop, and night conditions.
More accidents in AR
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- Grumman G1159, Jan 19, 1990
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Browse: Arkansas · Mitsubishi aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
