Airplane carrying 20 people crashed at RDU 25 years ago, killing 15

RALEIGH (WTVD) -- Twenty-five years ago a passenger airplane crashed at Raleigh Durham International Airport.

Flagship Airlines Flight 3379 was an American Eagle flight from Greensboro to Raleigh carrying 20 people.

The airplane crashed around 6:30 p.m. on Dec. 13, 1994 about four miles from the RDU runway. The weather was foggy and sleeting at the time.

Two pilots and 13 passengers died in the crash. Five passengers survived.

National Transportation Safety Board investigators said the engine failure light came on. When that happened the pilot should have gone through safety procedures to make sure the engine had failed.

In addition to failing to identify if the engine had failed, the pilot did not follow proper procedures for what to do if the engine did fail. NTSB said those factors are why the airplane crashed.