Accident
Minutes after departing from Cincinnati-Greater Cincinnati Airport runway 22, a Martin aircraft and a DC-3 collided at an altitude between 700 and 900 feet. The pilot-in-command of one aircraft had initiated a right turn when the collision occurred. The left wing of the DC-3 struck the right engine of the Martin, causing both aircraft to enter a dive. They crashed in a snow-covered field and a wooded area in a Cincinnati suburb. Both airplanes were destroyed on impact.
Occupants and Aircraft
The DC-3, registered N999B and owned by Castleton Inc., was crewed by two pilots. It was en route from Battle Creek to Miami with a planned intermediate stop at Lexington. The Martin aircraft carried additional occupants, and the total number of people on both aircraft was 15, all of whom died in the crash.
Probable Cause
The official investigation determined that the probable cause of the accident was the operation of the DC-3 in the control zone as unknown traffic, without clearance, very close to the base of, or in, the overcast.