What happened
Before the flight's initial leg, a dispatcher instructed the pilot to verify weather conditions. The pilot confirmed he had checked the weather, as noted by the dispatcher, after being informed of an additional flight leg. At 20:28, while climbing through 14,500 feet, the pilot contacted Albuquerque Approach Control using information "Yankee" and requested a descent to a lower altitude. The controller permitted the pilot to descend at his discretion using his own navigation.
Following this contact, communication was lost. Between 20:34 and 20:41, the controller attempted to reach the pilot four times without success. Other aircraft in the vicinity were also asked to attempt radio contact, but these efforts failed. The final radar return providing altitude data occurred at 20:33:19, indicating the aircraft was at 10,200 feet MSL. Shortly after, at 20:33:32, a primary radar contact without transponder or altitude data was detected 2.2 nautical miles southeast of the crash site, positioned on a path between the last known radar point and the destination.
The aircraft struck a mountain at an elevation of 9,017 feet, located 19 nautical miles southeast of the destination airport. Weather reports from the destination airport indicated overcast clouds at 4,200 feet and scattered clouds at 600 feet at the time of the incident. Earlier reports had noted rain and mountain obscuration.
Findings
An investigation of the wreckage showed that the engines and airframe were in functional condition and showed no mechanical failures that would have hindered normal flight operations. However, the aircraft impacted terrain while in flight.