What happened
A demonstration flight departing from Birmingham ended in a fatal accident near Demopolis. The aircraft, a twin engine airplane, was carrying one pilot and six passengers intended for a flight demonstration to Mobile. While the aircraft was maintaining a standard cruise altitude and airspeed, it experienced a sudden and total structural failure mid-air. Following this breakup, the plane entered a steep dive and struck the ground. The impact resulted in the total destruction of the airframe. There were seven fatalities and no survivors among the occupants.
Findings
Investigations into the accident identified that the primary cause was an airframe failure during flight stemming from inadequate or poor design characteristics. Specific technical issues were noted regarding the flight control systems, particularly involving the elevator and the elevator tab control mechanism. The investigation concluded that flutter within the elevator assembly and its attachments led to the separation of components in flight.