20010801023399A

(-23) This investigation disclosed that the center wing flap torque tube assembly was installed improperly which resulted in a split flap configuration that was uncontrollable. (.19)on August 1, 2001, about 0751 eastern daylight time, a mitsubishi, MU-2B-35, N1VY, registered to, and operated by bankair inc., as a title 14 CFR part 91 positioning flight, crashed in hilton head, south carolina. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and an instrument flight rules flight plan had been filed. The commercial-rated pilot, sole occupant of the aircraft, received fatal injuries, and the aircraft was destroyed. The flight originated from savannah, Georgia, the same day, about 0741. An official with bankair inc. stated that the pilot had just flown the aircraft from columbia, south carolina, to savannah, Georgia, as bankair flight 170, a title 14 CFR part 135 flight, and had dropped off his cargo. The bankair official further stated that the pilot was positioning the aircraft to hilton head to pick up additional cargo, when the accident occurred. An FAA controller said that the pilot had been on an IFR flight plan from savannah, to hilton head, had reported the airport in sight, and had been given approval to make a frequency change, and told to squawk 1200. According to a person at the hilton head airport who was monitoring the UNICOM frequency, the pilot of the accident airplane called on the UNICOM frequency, and asked for a traffic advisory, and he had responded to the pilot saying that traffic was landing and departing from runway 3. The witness further stated that the pilot responded saying, " thank you, traffic landing and departing runway 3", and that was the only communication he had with the pilot. Other witnesses reported seeing the aircraft in a right wing down, nose low flight attitude as it impacted trees, and came to rest on a golf course in the leamington section of the palmetto dunes plantation. During the impact, a postcrash fire ensued, and the aircraft was destroyed.