Incident Overview
The airplane departed Reno in the mid-morning. En route, the crew encountered poor weather conditions with icing. Control was lost, and the airplane went into a spin before crashing. All four occupants were killed.
Investigation Findings
The official investigation determined that the airplane entered a stall and subsequent crash due to improper in-flight decisions and airframe ice. Several contributing factors were identified: deficiency in company maintained equipment, services, and regulation on the part of personnel; icing conditions including sleet and freezing rain; blowing snow; the aircraft being near the aft center of gravity limit; and the absence of a longitudinal stability study.
Probable Cause and Contributing Factors
The probable cause is stated as: Stall and subsequent crash due to improper in-flight decisions and airframe ice. The contributing factors reported include deficiency in company maintained equipment, services, regulation on part of the personnel; icing conditions including sleet, freezing rain; blowing snow; aircraft near aft center of gravity limit; and no longitudinal stability study.