On March 10, 1982, a Beechcraft 90 King Air (registration N6272C) operated by Aircraft Facilities was involved in an aviation accident near Azores Islands, Portugal in flight. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot was forced to ditch the aircraft due to mechanical failures occurring during flight. This summary draws on records from the Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A); 2 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.
A single-pilot flight ended in an emergency ditching in the Atlantic Ocean near the Azores Islands following mechanical issues.
What happened
During a flight near the Azores Islands, the pilot encountered unexpected technical difficulties while in the air. Due to these ongoing in-flight malfunctions, the pilot was unable to continue the mission and was forced to perform an emergency ditching on the surface of the ocean.
Following the impact with the water, the aircraft began to submerge. While the aircraft eventually sank and was lost at sea, the pilot was successfully rescued from the scene. There were no other occupants on board at the time of the incident, resulting in zero fatalities among the crew, though the airframe was destroyed.
Findings
The primary driver of the emergency was in-flight technical problems encountered during the flight phase.
Probable cause
The pilot was forced to ditch the aircraft due to mechanical failures occurring during flight.
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