What happened
The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.
N899ZZ departed klro mount pleasant regional airport in south carolina at 23:50 zulu on March 23, 2020, inbound to kmrh michael j smith field airport in beaufort NC. N899ZZ was on an IFR flight plan cruising at 5000 feet MSL (mean sea level). The flight path paralleled the coast of north carolina just off shore which appeared to be a direct flight to the destination. From the radar plot and ADS-B information that was obtained from wilmington air traffic control, at approximately 01:02:24 zulu, N899ZZ started a descending right turn. At 01:03:31 zulu, radar and ADS-B data was lost. The coast guard searched for N899ZZ and found debris in the Ocean near the location of where the aircraft dropped off of radar. The aircraft was found on the Atlantic Ocean floor by privately hired divers. The aircraft at this time has not been recovered.
As the FAA filed it
N899ZZ DEPARTED KLRO MOUNT PLEASANT REGIONAL AIRPORT IN SOUTH CAROLINA AT 23:50 ZULU ON MARCH 23, 2020, INBOUND TO KMRH MICHAEL J SMITH FIELD AIRPORT IN BEAUFORT NC. N899ZZ WAS ON AN IFR FLIGHT PLAN CRUISING AT 5000 FEET MSL (MEAN SEA LEVEL). THE FLIGHT PATH PARALLELED THE COAST OF NORTH CAROLINA JUST OFF SHORE WHICH APPEARED TO BE A DIRECT FLIGHT TO THE DESTINATION. FROM THE RADAR PLOT AND ADS-B INFORMATION THAT WAS OBTAINED FROM WILMINGTON AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL, AT APPROXIMATELY 01:02:24 ZULU, N899ZZ STARTED A DESCENDING RIGHT TURN. AT 01:03:31 ZULU, RADAR AND ADS-B DATA WAS LOST. THE COAST GUARD SEARCHED FOR N899ZZ AND FOUND DEBRIS IN THE OCEAN NEAR THE LOCATION OF WHERE THE AIRCRAFT DROPPED OFF OF RADAR. THE AIRCRAFT WAS FOUND ON THE ATLANTIC OCEAN FLOOR BY PRIVATELY HIRED DIVERS. THE AIRCRAFT AT THIS TIME HAS NOT BEEN RECOVERED.
NTSB investigation
The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.