What happened
On the evening of September 29, 2004, an on-demand air taxi flight departed from Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. The aircraft, a N902GD, was engaged in a mission to transport financial documents for a bank. Shortly after takeoff, the flight failed to reach its intended destination, prompting a search and rescue operation. Debris identified as belonging to the missing plane was subsequently located floating in the Atlantic Ocean near coordinates 18 degrees 29 minutes north latitude and 066 degrees 27 minutes west longitude.
Radar tracking provided a detailed view of the flight's final moments. Following its departure, the N902GD reached an altitude of 1,700 feet before descending to 1,300 feet by 18:40. For the next ten minutes, radar indicated the plane was traveling east along the northern coastline of Puerto Rico at approximately 1,100 feet. The aircraft's altitude fluctuated further, climbing to 1,400 feet around 18:55 and then dropping through 1,000 feet and 800 feet. By 18:58, the plane had descended to 600 feet, and radar contact was officially lost at 18:59:18.
Findings
Meteorological analysis revealed that while conditions were clear at the time of departure, unstable weather patterns had developed over Puerto Rico. This included a moist southeasterly flow and associated thunderstorms. Doppler weather radar indicated that a significant rain shower, measuring 45-50 dBZ, was positioned directly along the flight path during the period when the aircraft disappeared. Data suggests the N902GD entered this intense rain cell just as it lost radar contact.
The investigation concluded that the accident resulted from improper inflight planning by the pilot, which led to an encounter with low ceilings and thunderstorms, ultimately causing a loss of control and an impact with the ocean.