What happened
The incident occurred shortly after departure from Charleston Airport. During the initial climb phase, the aircraft experienced a failure of its right engine. The pilot subsequently lost control of the airplane, which entered a stall and impacted a wooded area in close proximity to the airport.
All nine individuals on board sustained injuries. The airframe was destroyed by the forces of impact. No post-impact fire occurred. The flight crew consisted of a captain, a first officer, and a flight stewardess.
Findings
The official investigation determined that the loss of power in the right engine was due to causes that could not be identified. Several contributing factors were cited regarding operational procedures and pilot knowledge.
- The operator failed to establish adequate procedures requiring pilots to be familiar with the terrain surrounding airports.
- The captain did not adequately familiarize himself with the specific terrain near Charleston Municipal Airport.
- The operator did not inform pilots of the amount of power that could reasonably be extracted from the Pratt and Whitney Wasp S1H1-G engines under emergency conditions.
- This lack of information led to hesitancy by the captain in exercising emergency authority to use additional power soon enough to clear a nearby ridge.