Casa 212 Aviocar

While cruising in poor weather conditions, the twin engine struck the slope of Mt Maluti. All 18 occupants were killed.

The CASA 212 was bought by Geoterrex in 1983 and registered in Canada in 1985. The plane had been extensively modified for aerial survey work. These modifications consisted of two probes mounted on the fuselage above the cockpit and extending 10 feet in front of the aircraft nose, a l6-foot tail boom, and two wing tip pylons. The probes, pylons, and tail boom served to support a wire loop antenna which ran around the aircraft. In July 1988 the plane was prepared for a ferry flight across the Atlantic to Nantes, France. For the purposes of this ferry trip, the survey loop antenna and the wing tip pylons had been removed and stowed in the main cabin area. For this configuration a special ferry permit was necessary, but the company did not apply for one. On July 31, 1988 the aircraft departed Ottawa and arrived at Goose Bay later that day. On 2 August 1988, the aircraft departed Goose Bay at 09:05 UTC and arrived at Narsarsuaq, Greenland at 12:50 UTC. The aircraft was refuelled and departed one hour later at 13:50 UTC for Reykjavik, Iceland, at a planned altitude of FL130. Although the pilot’s instrument rating had expired and the co-pilot did not possess one, the crew filed an IFR flight plan to Reykjavik. The weight of the aircraft was about 3,000 pounds above the maximum authorized takeoff weight on takeoff from Narsarsuaq. At Reykjavik, the crew flew an ILS approach to runway 20. During the approach, the flaps were set at approximately 25 degrees, 15 degrees above the approved maximum of 10 degrees. Approximately one-half mile from the runway threshold, the aircraft entered a steep turn to the right, and the nose of the aircraft dropped sharply. The aircraft continued to turn to the right through 270 degrees and descended rapidly until it struck the ground approximately 900 feet short of the runway threshold. The aircraft burst into flames shortly after impact.

Crashed in unknown circumstances near the Campeche Airport, killing all six occupants.

The aircraft departed Panama City-Tocumen on a flight to a remote airstrip located in the Darién Province near the border with Colombia. On board were two pilots and 14 passengers, civilians and military personnel. While flying over Darién Province, weather conditions deteriorated when the aircraft struck the slope of a mountain. As it failed to arrive at destination, SAR operations were initiated and the wreckage was found about two weeks later. All 16 occupants were killed.

On May 8, 1987, flight 5452, a commuter flight regularly scheduled to depart from San Juan, Puerto Rico, at 0615 local time, for a flight to Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, departed at 0620 with four passengers and two crewmembers. The captain was 15 minutes late when he arrived for the flight at 0600. The first officer arrived on time at 0545. The airplane, a CASA C-212~CC, was operated by Executive Air Charter, Inc., doing business as American Eagle. The flight was on a visual flight rules flight plan, and communications with the flight en route were reported to have been routine. The first officer handled the initial radio communications, and the captain made subsequent radio communications. While in the vicinity of Mayaguez, the captain cancelled the flight plan and proceeded to make a visual approach to runway 9. The captain did not make the customary in-range call to the operations agent at Mayaguez to report the flight’s arrival estimate and fuel requirements. Witnesses who observed the airplane on its downwind leg reported that it appeared normal. One witness said the airplane seemed too fast on the approach and appeared to overshoot the extended centerline on the baseleg turn to final. Another said the airplane “turned tighter” and did not extend the downwind leg as normal. He said as the airplane came toward him, the nose rose up quickly and then the airplane rolled to the right and nosed over. A third witness said the airplane made a violent turn, and he thought the engine noise was louder than normal. A fourth confirmed that the airplane made a shortened downwind leg, making a continuous left turn and sinking fast. He said that it turned rapidly to the right and nosed down and struck the ground. He then saw it pivot around and slide backwards. He stated that fire began when the right wing and engine separated from the airplane. A fifth witness, a company baggage handler, said he heard an explosion and saw flames come out of the right engine before it turned twice and struck the ground. A crop duster pilot reported that everything appeared normal until the airplane was about 1,000 feet from the runway and about 100 feet above the ground. He said at that point, he heard a sound similar to that of a turbo propeller airplane going into reverse pitch to slow down after landing. He said the airplane then yawed to the right, followed by a roll to the left, as if the pilot had attempted to counteract the yaw. The airplane then rolled back to the right and the right wing tip struck the ground. A fire erupted immediately, the airplane turned about 1800, and it came to rest upright. The four passengers on board reported that the flight was routine until the approach into Mayaguez. One passenger seated in 3A noticed that the noise from the engines was lower than usual and that it was not the normal engine sound. He thought afterward that perhaps an engine had stopped and that the noise was different on the right. He said the airplane was not shaking or vibrating. A second passenger seated in 4C reported that the airplane lost altitude abruptly and that it fell rapidly as it banked to the left on the approach. He said he heard strange sounds from the left side and that it was an engine or scraping noise. He stated that he saw a 1 l/2- to 2-foot long flame come from the left engine, but that it did not appear to be spreading. He reported that the airplane jerked before it hit the ground. The third passenger, seated in 6A, reported that she heard an unusual metallic sound similar to a landing gear retracting or extending immediately before the crash. The fourth passenger in seat 78 was asleep and did not awaken until the crash. He said that he thought the airplane made a hard or gear-up landing.

The aircraft was engaged in a SAR mission when it crashed in unknown circumstances in the sea off Higuerote. The wreckage was found two days later. All three crew members were killed.

At 14:30 the flight was cleared for a runway 21R visual approach and was cleared to land one minute later, At a height of 60-70 feet the aircraft suddenly yawed violently to the left and banked left 80-90° in a descent. The aircraft then rolled right and struck the ramp area 1,010 feet inside and to the left of the runway 21R threshold. It then skidded 398 feet, struck three ground support vehicles in front of Gate F10 at Concourse F and caught fire. Both pilots and seven passengers were killed, 10 other occupants were injured.

The aircraft was approaching Casa Banana, in the Gorongosa National Park, when it struck treetops and crashed in a dense wooded area. All three crew members were killed.

Shortly after takeoff from Bata Airport, while climbing, the crew declared an emergency and elected to return. Unfortunately, an emergency landing was not possible as another aircraft was blocking the runway according to ATC. While returning, the crew lost control of the airplane that crashed in the sea few hundred meters offshore. The wreckage was found in shallow water and all 22 occupants were killed. The right engine apparently failed during initial climb and was not functioning at impact.

Crashed in unknown circumstances somewhere in the north part of Nicaragua. All 11 occupants were killed.