Accident Overview
On 6 March 2001, a private aircraft registered as N272BB crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the south coast of Iceland. The two female pilots, both United States citizens and private pilots, were killed. The aircraft had departed Keflavik Airport, Iceland, at 08:19 UTC, en route to Stornoway, Scotland, as part of a planned trip to London, England for the London-Sydney Air Race.
Flight History
The aircraft arrived at Narsarsuaq, Greenland, on 4 March 2001 from Cape Cod, United States. After refueling with 338 litres of LL100 avgas, the pilots received a weather briefing and departed for Iceland. The flight to Keflavik was uneventful, landing at 18:59 UTC on 4 March. The pilots decided to stay overnight. The next morning, 447 litres of LL100 were added to the main tanks, and the aircraft was hangared.
On 6 March, the pilots filed an instrument flight plan from Keflavik to Stornoway via the ALDAN reporting point, with Prestwick as alternate. The planned altitude was FL150 with a true airspeed of 145 knots and a fuel endurance of 10 hours. The aircraft was cleared by air traffic control and took off at 08:19 UTC.
Loss of Contact
After takeoff, communication with Keflavik Approach Control was normal. At 08:46 UTC, the flight transferred to Reykjavik Area Control Centre (OACC). The last communication with the crew occurred at 08:49:50 UTC, as the aircraft climbed through about 14,400 feet toward FL150. At 09:24:55 UTC, Reykjavik OACC attempted to contact N272BB to confirm its position but received no response. Subsequent radar replay showed that the aircraft's target was lost from radar at 08:56 UTC. The last plotted position was 63° 32' 04" N 020° 39' 36" W, approximately 8 nautical miles from the south coast of Iceland.
Search and Recovery
At 12:12 UTC, a search was initiated involving available ships and fishing vessels. An Icelandic Coast Guard helicopter was launched at 12:32 UTC. At 13:49 UTC, debris and human remains were found floating in the ocean, spread north-westwards over about 5 nautical miles from the point where the radar target disappeared.
Probable Cause (Official Findings)
The following findings were identified:
- The aircraft was operated in overweight conditions.
- The flight departed Iceland into unfavourable weather conditions.
- The aircraft was climbing in icing conditions prior to it went out of control.
- The reason for the departure from a normal flight could not be positively determined.
- The aircraft went into an uncontrolled descent, followed by an overstress and possible in-flight break-up during an attempted recovery.