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Accidents · NTSB CEN21FA209 · Final report

Mitsubishi MU2B accident near Hattiesburg, Mississippi, May 5, 2021

On May 5, 2021 at about 4:01 am local time, a 1979 Mitsubishi MU2B, registered N322TA, was destroyed in an accident during approach (IFR final approach) near Hattiesburg, Mississippi (Hattiesburg Bobby L Chain Muni airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).

The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged

The pilot’s failure to maintain control of the airplane during the night instrument approach which resulted in an inadvertent aerodynamic stall from which the pilot was unable to recover.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
May 5, 2021 · about 4:01 am local time
Place
Hattiesburg, Mississippi · Hattiesburg Bobby L Chain Muni · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
3 people were killed.
Weather
instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
Aircraft
Mitsubishi MU2B 60, built 1979 · all MU2Bs on the register
Registration
N322TA · no longer on the register · serial 760 S.A.
Damage
Destroyed
Flight
Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

The pilot was flying a nonprecision approach in instrument meteorological conditions at night. While flying the procedure turn for the approach, the airplane’s speed decayed toward the stall speed before the airplane accelerated back to the standard approach speed. During the descent from the final approach fix, the airplane’s descent stopped for about 30 seconds and then the airplane descended at a rate of about 1,300 ft per minute. The airplane decelerated and continued to descend until the airspeed was about 85 knots (about 7 knots above the calculated stall speed for flaps 20°) and the altitude was 500 ft mean sea level. The last recorded data point showed the airplane about 460 ft mean sea level and 750 ft from the accident site. The airplane impacted a private residence, and a postcrash fire ensued and destroyed the airplane. Impact signatures were consistent with a low-energy impact. Examination of the airframe and engines did not detect any preimpact anomalies that would have precluded normal operations. Signatures on the engines and propellers were consistent with both engines providing power at impact. A review of the pilot’s toxicological information found that the level of eszopiclone in his specimens was subtherapeutic and thus not likely a factor in the accident. The circumstances of the accident are consistent with an inadvertent aerodynamic stall from which the pilot was unable to recover.

The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.

The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English

What happened, in order

  1. Loss of control in flight during approach (IFR final approach) defining event
  2. Aerodynamic stall/spin during approach (IFR final approach)

The NTSB's findings

  • Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Airspeed › Not attained/maintained
  • Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot

Pilot

  • Certificate: private
  • Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
  • Flight time: 7,834 hours in all; 500 in this make and model
  • Last flight review: November 14, 2020
  • Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
  • Seat: left
  • Injury: fatal

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 7,610.1 hours
  • Last inspection: annual inspection, November 14, 2019
  • Maximum gross weight: 11,575 lb
  • Seats: 10
  • Landing gear: retractable
  • Engine 3: Honeywell TPE331-10-501 (turboprop); 0 hours total
  • Engine 4: Honeywell TPE331-10-501 (turboprop); 0 hours total
  • Fire on the ground

The flight

  • Departed from: SPS Wichita Falls TX at 1:57 am
  • Flight plan: IFR
  • Runway 13/3, 6,094 ft by 150 ft

Weather at the time

  • Light: night, dark
  • Visibility: 10 statute miles
  • Sky: broken clouds at 700 ft
  • Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
  • Altimeter: 29.95 inHg
  • Observation at 10:53 pm from KHBG, 2 miles away

Weather report (METAR): KHBG 050353Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM BKN007 OVC120 19/18 A2995 RMK AO2 LTG DSNT SE RAB0257E06 SLP138 P0000 T01940178

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Flight crew1
Passengers2

Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report

14 documents, released by the NTSB on September 20, 2023. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.

The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.

Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.