have been mechanical or operational difficulties (wind icing) which caused the flight to be below a normal safe altitude at the time of the crash.
DISCUSSION AND FINDINGS
Taking all the evidence as a whole the Board finds that:
- Existing and forecast weather known to the company and the crew at both Washington and New York indicated the inadvisability of attempting the conduct of the flight under contact flight rules. (See Appendix)
- Civil Air Regulations were violated in conducting the flight at all between Pulaski and Tri-City at an altitude of 4000 feet.
- The company exercised poor judgment and laxity in both dispatching and flight supervision.
- The pilot used questionable judgement in his flight planning.
- Because of a shortage of personnel the Civil Aeronautics Administration had not kept a close enough check on the company's operating and dispatching procedures over this route.
- The pilot either used poor judgement or was experiencing undisclosed mechanical or operational difficulties on that leg of the flight between Pulaski and Tri-City.
- Company, aircraft and crew were properly certificated for the flight.
PROBABLE CAUSE
The Board concludes that the probable cause of this accident was the pilot's failure to properly plan the flight and remain at a safe instrument altitude under existing conditions. A contributing cause of the accident was the company's laxity in dispatching and supervising the flight.
BY THE CIVIL AERONAUTICS BOARD:
/s/ L. Welch Pogue
/s/ Harllee Branch
/s/ Oswald Ryan
/s/ Josh Lee
