Engine Fell Off Aircraft Before 14-Death Crash

An engine fell off a commuter airplane before it crashed into a farm field last week, killing all 14 people aboard, investigators said Tuesday.

It was not clear whether the loss of the engine caused the crash or was just another sign that the plane was in trouble, they said.

Investigators already have said that an in-flight fire and the failure of maintenance workers to replace 43 screws on part of the plane contributed to the crash.

The plane, on a 1 1/2-hour flight from Laredo to Houston, nose-dived into a field last Wednesday near Eagle Lake, about 75 miles west of Houston.

It is clear that the Continental Express plane fell apart in the seconds before impact, said Brent Bahler, a spokeman for the National Transportation Safety Board in Washington.

The Brazilian-made Embraer-120 twin-engine turboprop airplane lost its left engine, left wing, horizontal stabilizer and a nine-foot de-icing attachment, Bahler said.

“We don’t yet know the sequence of events,” he said.

Investigators discovered last week that 43 screws were missing from a de-icing boot, which is attached to the horizontal stabilizer on the plane’s tail. The omission contributed to the loss of the boot and stabilizer, they said.

The screws were removed during routine maintenance work the day before the crash and were not replaced. Three maintenance workers were suspended by Continental.