Crash of a Beechcraft D18 in Brownsville: 1 killed

The pilot had just taken off at night on a flight to Mexico when he declared an intent to return and land with some unspecified emergency. While he was using his radio, the sound of both engines, running at high power, was audible. When asked if he required assistance, he gave an affirmative reply, but when asked if he required a crash crew, he gave a negative reply. Shortly after that, the aircraft collided with power lines about 1 mile from the runway, then impacted the ground and was demolished by fire. Impact with the power lines occurred at about 55 feet agl. A wire impact mark on the nose door indicated the aircraft was in a vertical bank when the collision occurred. An exam of the wreckage revealed no evidence of a preimpact/mechanical malfunction or failure; however, there was extensive damage from fire. There was evidence that the aircraft was loaded beyond its max certificated gross weight. The pilot had a temporary US license based on his canadian license. The pilot, sole on board, was killed.