Dr. Perry Inhofe, the pilot of a Mitsubishi MU-2B that crashed on November 13 last year while on approach to Tulsa International Airport, lost control of the aircraft after failing to manage a one-engine-inoperative situation, according to a report by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The MU-2 was not equipped with a flight data recorder and was not required to be. NTSB investigators were able to determine that the airplane was certified, equipped and maintained in accordance with federal regulations. They also found that the recovered airplane components showed no evidence of any pre-impact structural, engine or system failures.
The NTSB was not, however, able to determine the reasons for the left engine shutdown or to evaluate the pilot’s recognition of and response to an engine problem.
Although Dr. Inhofe’s experience in the aircraft totaled just 12 hours, the investigation determined he was certified and qualified in accordance with both Special Federal Aviation Regulation No. 108, required for MU-2B pilots, and adequate for the operation of the MU-2B.
The flight was Inhofe’s first as pilot-in-command of the MU-2 and he was making a trip from Salina, Kan., to his Tulsa home.