was a flight route that flew from
Lambert-St. Louis International Airport to
Kirksville ,
Missouri . Corporate Airlines (now
RegionsAir , defunct) flew the route as part of the
AmericanConnection network, an affiliate of
American Airlines . On
October 19 2004 , a Jetstream twin-engine turboprop flying the route crashed on the approach to Kirksville, killing thirteen people and injuring two.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of the accident was the pilots’ failure to follow established procedures and properly conduct a non-precision instrument approach at night in instrument meteorological conditions, including their descent below the minimum descent altitude before required visual cues were available (which continued un-moderated until the airplane struck the trees) and their failure to adhere to the established division of duties between the flying and non-flying (monitoring) pilot. Contributing to the accident were the pilots’ failure to make standard callouts and the current Federal Aviation Regulations that allow pilots to descend below the minimum descent altitude into a region in which safe obstacle clearance is not assured based upon seeing only the airport approach lights. The pilots’ failure to establish and maintain a professional demeanor during the flight and their fatigue likely contributed to their degraded performance.
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According to ''
The Kansas City Star '' newspaper, some of the 13 passengers were doctors from other states who had been due to attend a seminar at the
Kirksville College Of Osteopathic Medicine .
