What happened
On the evening of February 5, an aircraft departed from U-Tapao Airbase in Thailand to begin a scheduled 24-hour patrol mission over the Gulf of Thailand. During the early morning hours of the following day, at approximately 0300LT, the crew transmitted a position report to ground controllers. This communication proved to be the final radio contact before the aircraft vanished from radar.
Shortly after that transmission, the plane went missing. The wreckage was not located immediately; however, ten days later, search teams discovered debris and two bodies in the waters near Phú Quốc Island. The accident resulted in 12 fatalities, with no survivors among the crew members.
Findings
While investigators were unable to establish a definitive reason for the disappearance, evidence suggests that the aircraft experienced a loss of control likely stemming from malfunctions within the autopilot system.