Mitsubishi MU-2J accident near Missing, PO, December 9, 1988
On December 9, 1988 at about 12:21 pm local time, a Mitsubishi MU-2J, registered N296MA, was destroyed in an accident near Missing, PO. It was a ferry flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 9, 1988 · about 12:21 pm local time
- Place
- Missing, PO
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Mitsubishi MU-2J · all MU-2Js on the register
- Registration
- N296MA · registry record · serial 592
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Ferry flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING A FLT AT NIGHT FROM MAJURO, MARSHALL ISLANDS TO CAIRNS, AUSTRALIA, THE PLT REQUESTED A DSCNT FROM FL 190 TO 12,000 TO REMOVE ICE FROM THE AIRFRAME. LATER, HE REQUESTED A CLIMB TO FL 200. AFTER STARTING THE CLIMB, HE MADE A MAYDAY CALL TO SIDNEY FLT SERVICE & RPRTD THE ACFT WAS IN AN UNCTLD DSCNT. NO FURTHER TRANSMISSION WAS RCVD FROM THE ACFT. THE ACFT WAS PRESUMED TO HAVE CRASHED AT SEA, ABOUT 370 MI ENE OF CAIRNS. NEITHER THE ACFT NOR THE PLT WAS FND. THUNDERSTORMS WERE RPRTD IN THE AREA & THE PLT RPRTD BEING IN THE CLOUDS DURING AN EARLIER DSCNT TO 12,000'. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE ACFT WAS BEING FERRIED FM TULSA, OK. A PREVIOUS PLT, WHO FLEW IT TO OAKLAND, REFUSED TO CONT THE FLT DUE TO A CABIN PRESSURIZATION PROBLEM. A 2ND PLT, WHO WAS GOING TO CONT THE FLT, RTRND TO OAKLAND & LNDD THE ACFT IN AN OVER WT COND, WHICH RESULTED IN STRUCTURAL DMG. A 3RD PLT CONTD THE FLT, MAKING STOPS IN HAWAII & THE MARSHALL ISLANDS.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 10,800 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE-331 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MAJU Majuro
- Destination: Cairns,Australi OF
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
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.