What happened
During a night flight under instrument meteorological conditions, a cargo aircraft operating on an on-demand basis struck trees and terrain. The accident occurred roughly one mile from the destination airport while the crew was executing a non-precision approach. Radar tracking confirmed that the aircraft followed the localizer course toward the airport and initiated a descent after passing the final approach fix.
Findings
Investigation into the circumstances revealed that the aircraft was equipped with an icing protection system. Observations from another aircraft that completed the same approach and landed safely indicated the presence of light rime icing during the arrival phase. There were no documented mechanical failures or anomalies identified that would have prevented the aircraft from operating normally prior to the impact.