Flight Details
At approximately 1204, an aircraft departed Geiger Field in Spokane, Washington, with a crew of two, seven passengers, and 800 gallons of fuel. The flight was operating under Instrument Flight Rules with a planned cruising altitude of 6,000 feet MSL. Takeoff weight was 33,822 pounds, below the maximum allowable of 37,780 pounds, and the center of gravity was within limits. Four minutes after departure, at 1208, the crew reported reaching the assigned altitude. At 1212, they received the Wenatchee weather, which was below minimums. The flight immediately requested clearance to Yakima, where weather was above minimums.
Emergency Message
While the Spokane radio operator processed the new clearance, the flight broadcast an emergency message at approximately 1213, about 15 seconds after requesting clearance. No prior difficulties had been reported. The message was received by operators in Spokane, Yakima, and Seattle, and recorded on magnetic tape in Seattle. It consisted of three short sentences. All operators agreed on the first sentence, "We are in trouble," and the last, "Going down fast." The middle sentence was interpreted variously: one operator heard "Plane gone nuts," another heard "Right engine haywire," and a third recorded a series of Q's indicating not understood. No further radio contact occurred.
Crash
At or about 1214, the aircraft struck the ground on the Pundy farm, approximately three miles west of Reardan, Washington, and about 20 miles from Geiger Field. All eight occupants were killed. A flash fire followed impact and continued burning for some time. Weather at the time and location included light snow, with a ceiling of about 200 feet and surface visibility of approximately one-third mile. Instrument conditions prevailed at the flight level, with no icing or turbulence forecast or reported.
Investigation and Probable Cause
Examination of the wreckage found no evidence of structural failure or fire in flight. The investigation concluded that the flight was uneventful until 30 to 90 seconds before impact, when a difficulty of undetermined origin resulted in loss of control and rapid descent to the ground. The probable cause was determined to be a sudden loss of control for reasons unknown, leading to rapid descent.