Accident
A U.S. Air Force training aircraft departed Carswell Air Force Base on a routine training mission over the Gulf of Mexico. During the flight, the airplane went out of control and crashed into the sea a few dozen miles off Matagorda Island. A small amount of debris was recovered several days later, but no trace of the eight crew members was found.
The crew list includes:
- Pilot: Maj Frank M. Salavarria
- Copilot: Lt William T. Causey
- Radio navigator: Cpt Charles W. Roberts
- Air gunner: M/Sgt Kermit C. Casey
- Navigator: Lt Michael L. Carroll
- Electronic warfare officer: Cpt John T. Pantilla
- Additional crew: Cpt Thomas D. Childs and Maj Phillip F. Strine
Investigation
Due to the lack of evidence, the official investigation could not determine the exact cause of the accident. However, investigators did not rule out the assumption that the loss of control may have been caused by a stabilizer trim issue resulting from an electric bus failure.