Mitsubishi MU2B accident near Eleuthera, BS

On May 15, 2017, a Mitsubishi MU2B (airplane) was involved in an accident near Eleuthera, BS. 4 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.

Date

May 15, 2017

Place

Eleuthera, BS

Aircraft

Mitsubishi MU2B · Airplane

Injuries

4 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor

Damage

Destroyed

Position

25.200°N, 75.967°W

NTSB ID

20170517X95558

Official records · ERA17FA181

• Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation

Air traffic control records

• Air Traffic Control Radar Track Image: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
• Air Traffic Control Radar Raw Data: Document (CSV), on ntsb.gov
• Air Traffic Control Transcripts: Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov

NTSB summary

HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn May 15, 2017, about 1329 eastern daylight time, a Mitsubishi MU 2B-40, N220N, crashed into the Atlantic Ocean 32 miles east of Eleuthera, The Bahamas. The commercial pilot and the three passengers were fatally injured, and the airplane was destroyed. The airplane was registered to and operated by Ithaca Consulting, Inc., under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed, and an instrument flight rules flight plan was filed for the personal cross-country flight. The airplane departed Rafael Hernandez Airport (BQN), Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, about 1100 and was destined for Space Coast Regional Airport (TIX), Titusville, Florida. Radar and voice communication information from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) revealed that the airplane climbed out of BQN, leveled at flight level (FL) 240 (24,000 ft mean sea level at standard pressure), and maintained the same relative heading, airspeed, and altitude for about 2.5 hours. The airplane was handled by the Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZMA) as it entered an area of overlapping radar coverage. The overlapping facilities were ZMA, Nassau Approach Control, and Grand Turks Radar. At 1141, while in cruise flight at FL240, the pilot contacted the ZMA controller at position R62. The ZMA R62 controller provided a clearance "direct Titusville," which the pilot acknowledged. The ZMA R62 controller later provided a frequency change, and, at 1215, the pilot checked in with the ZMA R58 controller on the new frequency, which the controlle

Probable cause

The pilot's intentional flight into an area of known icing and convective thunderstorm activity, which resulted in a loss of control of the airplane.

More accidents in BS

• Gates Learjet Corp. 35A, Nov 9, 2014
• Cessna 402, Oct 5, 2010
• Agusta AW139, Jul 4, 2019
• Piper PA-23-250, Jan 17, 2018
• Cessna 340A, Aug 18, 2014

Browse: Bahamas · Mitsubishi aircraft

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Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.