What happened
On the day of the accident, a PA-32, registered as N82419, was operating under radar services while traveling toward Greenwood Municipal Airport. Approximately three miles from the destination, air traffic control terminated radar services for the aircraft. Simultaneously, an MU-2, registered as N74FB, had departed from the same airport and was communicating with ATC while awaiting an IFR clearance. At the time of the incident, the MU-2 had not yet been detected on radar.
The two aircraft collided at an altitude of 2,100 feet MSL, roughly two miles from the airport. The impact occurred just east of the Indianapolis airport radar service area. The flight paths of the two planes were nearly opposing, with the MU-2 traveling on a heading of 066° and the PA-32 on a heading of 174°.
Following the collision, the pilot and passenger aboard the PA-32 managed to maintain control of the aircraft and performed a controlled landing. However, the collision resulted in five fatalities among the occupants of the MU-2.