On January 14, 1936, a Douglas DC-2 airliner, operating the flight that day on its then Memphis to Little Rock route, crashed 14 minutes after departure.

The aircraft later crashed into a swamp near Goodwin, Arkansas, about two miles north of U.S. Highway 70, disintegrating on impact and killing all 17 people on board.

The U.S. Commerce Department appointed a board of inquiry led by Eugene T. Vidal to investigate the accident.

At that time, there were different theories as to what happened on the aircraft, such as a piece of metal that appeared to have a bullet hole on it according to the Arkansas Gazette, or someone who may have hindered the pilot's actions while flying.

The family of stewardess Perla Gasparini filed a federal lawsuit for undisclosed damages, the widow of crash victim Nathan Porter sued for $16,000 and the estate of Frank C. Hart settled a claim for $42,500.