What happened
An aerial collision occurred over Burlington Township, New Jersey, involving two separate aircraft operating under visual flight rules in daylight conditions. The first aircraft, a Piper PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftain with registration N27944, was operated by Patuxent Airways, Inc. The second aircraft, a Piper PA-44-180 Seminole with registration N2225G, was operated by Hortman Aviation Services, Inc.
The impact resulted in the total destruction of both airplanes. The collision caused the deaths of ten people in total: the pilot, the co-pilot, and seven passengers on the N27944 flight, along with the flight instructor and the private pilot on the N2225G flight.
Findings
Investigations confirmed that both flight crews were properly certified and qualified for their respective operations. There were no indications of personal issues or fatigue-related rest anomalies affecting the crews. Furthermore, both aircraft had completed all necessary inspections and were in compliance with all relevant airworthiness directives. Physical evidence from the wreckage ruled out mechanical failures, structural issues, bird strikes, or in-flight fires as contributing factors.
Analysis of the cockpit visibility indicated that the aircraft were likely visible to each other's crews for a significant period prior to the impact. Specifically, the N2225G would have been visible to the crew of the N27944 for at least 60 seconds before the collision. While the exact visibility from the Seminole cockpit could not be fully determined due to a lack of stereo photography, the Chieftain would have been visible to the Seminole crew for most of the final minute of flight.
Notably, toxicology reports indicated that the pilot of the N2225G had ingested doxylamine, a sedating antihistamine, prior to the accident. Although the available blood samples were insufficient to confirm if the medication caused impairment or to establish the exact timing of ingestion, the presence of the substance was a significant finding.