27AUG2006 at 0607LT

N431CA

Lexington

Lexington - Atlanta

Construction number

7472

Year of manufacture

2001

Crew on board

3

Pax on board

47

Crew fatalities

2

Pax fatalities

47

Other fatalities

0

49

On takeoff from Lexington-Blue Grass airport, the aircraft hit trees and crashed in a small wood located near the airport. All occupants, except the copilot, were killed. It is clearly defined that the crew attempted to takeoff from runway 26 which is 3,500 feet long instead of runway 22. It seems that this mistake, done by the crew, was contributed by low visibility (small shower front approaching and still dark). Due to short runway, the aircraft did not takeoff, hit trees and crashed. NTSB indicated that the taxiway to runway 22 has been modified recently, passing in front of the runway 26. Both pilots made a remark about the fact that the runway 26 was unlighted at the time of the accident. The flight was made on behalf of Delta Connection.