Austin - Dallas

On June 2, 1986 at 09:42 PM, Austin - Dallas experienced a crash involving Mitsubishi MU-2 Marquise, operated by Martinaire, with the event recorded near Austin Texas.

The flight was categorized as cargo and the reported phase was takeoff (climb) at a airport (less than 10 km from airport) crash site.

1 people were known to be on board, 1 fatalities were recorded, 0 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 100.0%.

Crew on board: 1, crew fatalities: 1, passengers on board: 0, passenger fatalities: 0, other fatalities: 0.

The listed crash cause is human factor. About 6 minutes after takeoff, at 2138:31 cdt, the pilot reported level at 9,000 feet msl. At 2140:17, he transmitted that he had trouble and said he could not control or disconnect the autopilot (a/p) which was causing the aircraft to descend. At 2141:14, he stated he was descending at 6,000 feet/min. Another company pilot in another aircraft asked if he could find the breaker, meaning the a/p circuit breaker. At 2141:27, the pilot of N8CC replied, 'call you back.' Seconds later, radio and radar contact with N8CC were lost. A search was initiated, but the aircraft was not found until the following morning. An exam revealed the aircraft impacted in a steep, nose down, inverted attitude while at high speed; much of the wreckage was buried. No preimpact part failure/malfunction was found. With the a/p engaged, back pressure on the control column would have caused the a/p to trim nose down. Subsequently, the manufacturer issued a precautionary advisory to all MU-2 owner/operators regarding proper operation of the a/p and the various ways in which it can be disengaged. The pilot, sole on board, was killed.

Aircraft reference details include registration N8CC, MSN 569, year of manufacture 1972.

Geospatial coordinates for this crash are approximately 30.2851°, -97.7339°.