What happened
On the night of the accident, Monmouth Airlines Flight 98 departed from Wilkes-Barre, heading toward Allentown for a brief instrument flight rules (IFR) operation. During the descent, Allentown Approach Control provided the crew with instructions for a VOR approach and requested a position report once the aircraft reached a point 12 miles north of the Allentown VOR.
At approximately 2307LT, after receiving a position update from the flight, controllers cleared the aircraft for an approach to runway 06, requesting that the crew report when inbound over the VOR. During this phase of the flight, the aircraft struck the ridge of Blue Mountain at an altitude of 1540 ft (470 m). The crash site was located roughly 11.3 miles north of the Allentown-Bethlehem Easton Airport. The impact resulted in the total destruction of the aircraft, causing four fatalities and four injuries.
Findings
Investigations into the accident determined that the pilot failed to follow the approved procedures required for conducting a non-precision instrument approach while flying in instrument meteorological conditions. Additionally, investigators concluded that pilot fatigue likely played a significant role in the accident, as both pilots had completed extensive on-duty and instrument flight hours prior to the collision, which negatively impacted their decision-making and judgment during the approach.