While on approach for landing, the Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia aircraft crashed nose-down 18 miles (29 km) southwest of Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport at 15:54 EST, killing all 29 people on board.

[3]: 6–8 One of the passengers, Maureen DeMarco, was travelling to the funeral of her brother, Brian Scully, who had been killed the previous month on the crash of Airborne Express Flight 827.

During the turn, Captain Carlsen made the statement "Yeah, looks like your low speed indicator," and asked First Officer Reece for increased power to the engines.

The pilots lost control, and Flight 3272 crashed into a rural field in Raisinville Township in Monroe County, killing all 29 aboard.

A contributing factor was the crew's decision to operate in icing conditions while near the lower end of the flight envelope while the flaps were retracted.