ASN Aircraft accident Beechcraft 99 Airliner N844NS Monroe, GA
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Status:Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Date:Sunday 6 July 1969
Time:21:22
Type:Silhouette image of generic BE99 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different
Beechcraft 99 Airliner
Operator:Air South
Registration: N844NS
MSN: U- 16
First flight: 1968
Total airframe hrs:2226
Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-20
Crew:Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Passengers:Fatalities: 12 / Occupants: 12
Total:Fatalities: 14 / Occupants: 14
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Aircraft fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location:10 km (6.3 mls) NW of Monroe, GA (   United States of America)
Phase: En route (ENR)
Nature:Domestic Scheduled Passenger
Departure airport:Atlanta Municipal Airport, GA (ATL/KATL), United States of America
Destination airport:Greenville-Spartanburg Airport, SC (GSP/KGSP), United States of America
Flightnumber: 168
Narrative:
Air South Flight 168 departed Atlanta at 21:07. At 21:13 the flight reported level at its assigned cruising altitude of 7,000 feet. The Beech had been cruising for eleven minutes when it attained a gradual nose down attitude due to a change in the longitudinal trim. The pilots noticed the change after about six seconds and initiated a recovery action. The horizontal stabilizer continued to move to a full nose down position. Excessive pulling force on the control column was necessary to recover from the high speed dive. The necessary stick forces for such an out-of-trim condition can exceed the capability of one pilot, and in
some cases two pilots, to control. The Beech continued to descend until both wings failed at high speed, just before the airplane crashed into the ground in a near vertical attitude.

Probable Cause:

PROBABLE CAUSE: "An unwanted change in longitudinal trim which resulted in a nosedown high-speed flight condition that was beyond the physical capability of the pilots to overcome. The initiating element in the accident sequence could not be specifically determined. However, the design of the aircraft flight control system was conducive to malfunctions which, if undetected by the crew, could lead to a loss of control."

Accident investigation:

cover
Investigating agency: NTSB
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 1 year and 2 months
Accident number: NTSB/AAR-70-18
Download report: Final report


Follow-up / safety actions

NTSB issued 1 Safety Recommendation

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Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Atlanta Municipal Airport, GA to Greenville-Spartanburg Airport, SC as the crow flies is 245 km (153 miles).
Accident location: Exact; as reported in the official accident report.

This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.
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Beech 99

  • 239 built
  • 2nd loss
  • 2nd fatal accident
  • The worst accident (at the time)
  • 4th worst accident (currently)
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