Save the Checks: Turboprop Hauling Flight Faces Harrowing Double-Engine Failure

After not being able to get in a word edgewise with ATC, without warning, the right engine quit.

Brian Thomson

Wednesday, December 31, 2025 at 08:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

[Illustration credit: Joel Kimmel]

Key Takeaways:

During his first flight as PIC in a Turbo Commander, the pilot experienced a dual engine failure due to fuel siphoning from a deteriorated fuel cap seal, an issue that should have been caught in maintenance.
Despite severe weather (dense fog), critical equipment malfunctions (inoperative DME, partial landing gear extension, no flaps), and a challenging approach, the pilot skillfully executed an emergency belly landing at Atlanta, stopping just before a highway embankment.
The harrowing incident, during which the injured pilot prioritized saving the cargo ("checks"), underscored the vital importance of thorough aircraft maintenance and pre-buy inspections, inspiring his call sign and preceding a long, accident-free career.

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I was flying for a check hauling company (which will remain anonymous), upgrading from Beech Barons to the AC680W Turbo Commander. The aircraft training consisted of a week (Monday through Friday) flying my normal route from Atlanta to Charlotte, North Carolina, and back to Atlanta.

Friday evening, with a blessing from the company instructor, I was released to fly as PIC. The evening of Saturday, November 20, 1983, I would take my first flight as PIC in the Turbo Commander and single pilot.