What happened
The flight originated in Bridgeport, Connecticut, traveling toward California with two crew members. The route included stops in White Plains, New York, and LaGuardia Field, where two additional passengers joined the flight. After departing LaGuardia for Tulsa, Oklahoma, the aircraft operated under Visual Flight Rules without a filed flight plan. Upon arriving in Tulsa, the aircraft was refueled to its full capacity, including the main tanks, the nose tank, and the rear fuselage tank. Following a weather briefing from the local U.S. Weather Bureau, an Instrument Flight Rules flight plan was submitted to the Air Route Traffic Centre.
At 2114LT, the crew contacted Oklahoma City Airway Communications Station to request the cancellation of their IFR flight plan and sought landing clearance for Will Rogers Field. Controllers provided weather updates indicating 10,000-foot overcast conditions with fog and visibility reduced to 1.5 miles. The aircraft's final communication occurred while requesting clearance for Will Rogers Field. Shortly thereafter, at 2117LT, the A-26 crashed approximately 2 3/8 miles northwest of Union City, Oklahoma. Witnesses reported hearing two mid-air explosions before impact. Debris from the fuselage and empennage was scattered across a three-mile stretch of the flight path. The accident resulted in four fatalities.
Findings
The investigation determined that the aircraft's empennage was lost during flight due to an in-flight fuel explosion occurring in the aft section of the fuselage. Evidence suggested a significant fire and explosion hazard exists in the rear fuselage area of this aircraft type when the rear tank is installed in the same compartment as electrical components capable of sparking.