On May 5, 2012, at 0640 UTC, a Piper PA42 Cheyenne III, French registration F-GXES, was destroyed when it crashed about four minutes after takeoff into the Atlantic Ocean, three miles from Grand Case, St. Maarten. The pilot and three passengers on board were fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The foreign, non-scheduled cross-country flight was en route to Fort de France, Martinique. Witnesses saw the airplane explode and crash into the sea. This investigation is under the jurisdiction of the government of France. This report is for informational purposes only and contains information released by, or obtained from the French BEA. Any further information regarding the investigation can be obtained from the French BEA at: Bureau d’Enquetes et d’Analyses Zone Sud – Batiment 153 200 rue de Paris Aeroport du Borget 93352 Le Bourget Cedex France Telephone: +33 1 49 92 72 00 Facsimile: +33 1 49 92 72 03 E-mail: per@bea-fr.org