Pointe-à-Pitre

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

De Havilland DHC-6 Twin Otter

Schedule:

Pointe-à-Pitre - Marie-Galante

MSN:

469

YOM:

1975

Location:

Country:

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Crew on board:

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Pax on board:

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Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The twin engine airplane departed Pointe-à-Pitre on a schedule flight to the Island of Marie-Galante, carrying 19 passengers and one pilot. Weather conditions deteriorated en route and while approaching Marie-Galante, the ceiling was very low, about 200 feet above water with rain falls, turbulences and stormy conditions. While completing a slight turn to the left, the left wing tip struck the water surface. The aircraft crashed into the sea and sank by a depth of 13 meters few hundred meters offshore. Five passengers were rescued while 15 other occupants, among them the pilot, were killed. The wreckage was recovered. The aircraft was not equipped with a flight data recorder or an autopilot system.

Probable cause:

In the absence of a flight data recorder (not compulsory on this type of aircraft), investigators stated that their examination of the wreck showed no evidence of a technical failure of the aircraft or of its engines or equipment prior to impact, and that the probable cause of the accident was the decision taken by the pilot to descend in cloud to try to establish visual contact with the ground or the sea. The absence of an autopilot system (it was not installed in the aircraft) was acknowledge by the commission. It was reported that the airline had requested and obtained from the French CAA an exemption to fly this aircraft with only one pilot, but the said exemption mentioned that an operative autopilot system was compulsory for all flights, which was not the case for this aircraft. Prior to the accident, the Pilot's Association had officially protested in writing about the total lack of implementation of these provisions by the airline, about the pressures exerted onto the pilots to accept such flights in the absence of ATC radar coverage, of airborne weather radar, DME and transponder equipment, together with inadequate maintenance practices.

Crash of a De Havilland DHC-6 Twin Otter off Sint Maarten: 13 killed

Date & Time: Dec 21, 1972

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

F-OGFE

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Pointe-à-Pitre - Sint Maarten

MSN:

258

YOM:

1969

Location:

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Circumstances:

The Twin Otter was approaching Sint Maarten-Princess Juliana Airport by night when it crashed in unknown circumstances into the sea few km offshore. The aircraft was destroyed and all 13 occupants were killed.

Crash of a Douglas R4D-6 near Pointe-à-Pitre: 2 killed

Date & Time: Sep 9, 1971

Type of aircraft:

Douglas DC-3

Operator:

Carib West Airways

Registration:

8P-AAC

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Cargo

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Port of Spain – Marigot

MSN:

14918/26362

YOM:

1944

Location:

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Circumstances:

The departure from Port of Spain was delayed for unknown reason and enroute, the crew was informed that the airport at Marigot was closed to traffic. The captain decided to divert to Pointe-à-Pitre-Le Raizet Airport. While descending by night, the crew failed to realize that his altitude was insufficient when the airplane struck trees, stalled and crashed in a dense wooded area located on the volcano La Soufrière, some 25 km southwest of Pointe-à-Pitre. Both pilots were killed in the accident.

Probable cause:

The accident was the consequence of a controlled flight into terrain.

Crash of a Curtiss C-46D-10-CU Commando in Pointe-à-Pitre: 2 killed

Date & Time: Oct 28, 1970

Type of aircraft:

Curtiss C-46 Commando

Operator:

Registration:

HK-792

Flight Phase:

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Flight Type:

Cargo

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

MSN:

33060

YOM:

1945

Location:

Country:

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Crew on board:

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Circumstances:

En route to Colombia on a cargo flight, the crew informed ATC about technical problems and was cleared to divert to Pointe-à-Pitre-Le Raizet Airport for an emergency landing. On final, the airplane went out of control and crashed in flames. Both pilots were killed and two other occupants were injured.

Crash of a Curtiss C-46D-10-CU Commando into the Caribbean Sea: 4 killed

Date & Time: Apr 10, 1970

Type of aircraft:

Curtiss C-46 Commando

Operator:

Registration:

HK-1281

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Cargo

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Santa Marta – Pointe-à-Pitre

MSN:

33275

YOM:

1945

Location:

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Circumstances:

The C-46 departed Santa Marta Airport at 1211LT on a cargo flight to Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, carrying a load of 5 tons of meat. While cruising at an altitude of 7,000 feet, the crew informed ATC about his ETA in Guadeloupe at 1755LT when contact was lost. The airplane crashed in unknown circumstances into the sea. No trace of the aircraft nor the four crew members was found.

Crash of a Boeing 707-328B off Maiquetía: 62 killed

Date & Time: Dec 3, 1969 at 1805 LT

Type of aircraft:

Boeing 707

Operator:

Registration:

F-BHSZ

Flight Phase:

Takeoff (climb)

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Caracas-Maiquetía-Simón Bolívar

Schedule:

Santiago de Chile – Caracas – Pointe-à-Pitre – Lisbon – Paris

MSN:

18459/335

YOM:

1963

Flight number:

AF212

Location:

Vargas

Country:

Venezuela

Region:

South America

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

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Circumstances:

Three minutes after takeoff from Maiquetía-Simon Bolivar Airport, while climbing to a height of 3,000 feet at night, the aircraft went out of control, nosed down and plunged into the sea about 5 km offshore. The wreckage sank by a depth of 50 metres and all 62 occupants were killed.

Probable cause:

The exact cause of the accident could not be determined. It was suspected that the loss of control was the consequence of a spatial disorientation on part of the pilot-in-command. No official investigation report was published either by the Venezuelan Authorities or by the French Government. All official documents referring to this tragedy are classified 'secret-defense' by the French Authorities until 2029. Nevertheless, in a classified document dated August 7, 1970, the French Bureau of Investigations (BEA-Bureau Enquêtes-Accidents) asked the French government to make a contact through the diplomatic way with the Venezuelan Authorities, to establish any evidence relating to suspicious traces found on clothes and some debris, some of them coming from the left main gear. On 17 November 1970, the Central Armament Laboratory of Paris confirmed that acetone washes were carried out on certain parts such as the fuselage, the bottom floor of the landing hatch and the landing gear. On the neighboring parts of the left main gear, it has been possible to demonstrate the presence of nitrocellulose, nitroglycerine and a nitro derivative in the form of traces that could come from the decomposition of dinitrotoluene or possibly trinitrotoluene. Consequently, in a letter dated November 27, 1970, the Chief of the General Inspectorate of the French Civil Aviation confirms in an official letter that the technical analysis carried out by the various laboratories highlighted a high probability that the destruction in flight of the aircraft should be attributable to an act of malicious intent. Indeed, the chemical and metallurgical analysis showed that a powerful explosive device may have been placed in the well zone of the left main gear.

Crash of a Boeing 707-328C on Mt La Soufrière: 63 killed

Date & Time: Mar 5, 1968 at 2032 LT

Type of aircraft:

Boeing 707

Operator:

Registration:

F-BLCJ

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Santiago de Chile – Caracas – Pointe-à-Pitre – Lisbon – Paris

MSN:

19724

YOM:

1968

Flight number:

AF212

Location:

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Region:

Crew on board:

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Pax on board:

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Total fatalities:

Captain / Total flying hours:

18215

Captain / Total hours on type:

4415.00

Copilot / Total flying hours:

4737

Copilot / Total hours on type:

1842

Aircraft flight hours:

Circumstances:

Air France Flight 212 was a scheduled service from Santiago (Chile) to Paris (France) with en route stops at Quito (Ecuador), Caracas (Venezuela), Pointe-à-Pitre (Guadeloupe) and Lisbon (Portugal). The flight was operated by a brand new Boeing 707, named "Château de Lavoûte-Polignac", which had just been delivered to Air France a month and a half before the accident. The aircraft took off from Caracas at 19:27 for an estimated one hour and eight-minute flight to Pointe-à-Pitre on the French Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. The aircraft climbed to a cruising altitude of FL330 and the flight crew contacted the Piarco FIR controller at approximately 19:53 hours. They reported flying at FL330 and estimating over Piarco at 20:00, over the OA reporting point at 20:09 and reaching Pointe-à-Pitre at 20:32. At approximately 20:09 the flight reported over OA and requested authorization to descend in five minutes time. Piarco cleared the flight to the Guadeloupe radio beacon at FL90 and asked it to report when leaving FL330 and when reaching FL150. At 20:14, three minutes sooner than planned, the crew reported leaving FL330. Seven minutes later they reported passing FL150. It was then cleared to contact the Guadeloupe ACC and was advised that an aircraft proceeding from Martinique to Guadeloupe was flying at FL80 and estimating Guadeloupe at 20:44 hours. About 20:24 the flight reached the cleared altitude of FL90. After several unsuccessful attempts the flight established radio contact with Pointe-à-Pitre Tower at 20:29. It was again cleared to FL90, given a QNH of 1016 mb and requested to report at FL90, or runway in sight. Following a different route than normal, the airplane passed a brightly lit town (Basse Terre) on the coast of Guadeloupe. The pilot-in-command probably erroneously believed that it was Pointe-à-Pitre and that he would reach Le Raizet Airport in approximately one minute. At 20:29:35 the crew replied that the aircraft was at FL90 and they estimated they would be over the airport in approximately 1-1,5 minute. Less than one minute later they reported seeing the airport and were cleared for a visual approach to runway 11. The aircraft then descended over mountainous terrain and passed Saint Claude at an altitude of approximately 4,400 ft. Flight 212 was observed to impact on the southern slope of La Découverte, the peak of the La Soufrière Volcano, at an elevation of 1,200 m (3,937 ft).

Probable cause:

The accident resulted from a visual approach procedure at night in which the descent as begun from a point which was incorrectly identified. For lack of sufficient evidence (flight recorder was not recovered, condition and location of wreckage), the Commission was not able to establish the sequence of events which led to this crew error.

Final Report:

Crash of a Boeing 707 in Pointe-à-Pitre: 113 killed

Date & Time: Jun 22, 1962 at 0403 LT

Type of aircraft:

Boeing 707

Operator:

Registration:

F-BHST

Flight Phase:

Flight Type: