Uruguay

Executive/Corporate/Business

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Swearingen SA227 Metro III

Site:

Lake, Sea, Ocean, River

Schedule:

San Fernando - Carmelo

MSN:

BB-1367

YOM:

1990

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Captain / Total flying hours:

8039

Captain / Total hours on type:

478.00

Aircraft flight hours:

4616

Aircraft flight cycles:

4490

Circumstances:

Owned by Grupo Kowzef (Federico Alejandro Bonomi), the twin engine aircraft departed San Fernando (Buenos Aires) at 1222LT on an executive flight to Carmelo, Uruguay. On approach to Carmelo-Zagarzazú Airport runway 35, the pilot encountered marginal weather conditions and initiated a go-around procedure. Few minutes later, he attempted a second approach under VFR mode. While completing a slight turn to the left in descent, the aircraft impacted the surface of the Río de la Plata and came to rest in shallow water some 10 km southwest of Carmelo Airport. The pilot and four passengers were killed and four other occupants were injured. The aircraft was destroyed.

Probable cause:

The accident was the consequence of a controlled flight into terrain after the pilot suffered a loss of situational awareness due to a poor evaluation of the flight conditions upon arrival. The following contributing factors were identified:
- The pilot failed to return to his departure airport or to divert to the alternate airport due to poor weather conditions at the destination airport,
- The pilot continued the approach under VFR mode in IMC conditions with visibility below minimums,
- Poor evaluation of the flight conditions at destination on part of the pilot due to the combination of psychological and physiological factors.

Final Report:

Crash of a Swearingen SA227AC Metro III off Montevideo: 2 killed

Date & Time: Jun 6, 2012 at 1955 LT

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

CX-LAS

Flight Phase:

Takeoff (climb)

Flight Type:

Cargo

Survivors:

Site:

Lake, Sea, Ocean, River

Schedule:

Montevideo - Buenos Aires

MSN:

AC-482

YOM:

1982

Location:

Montevideo

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Captain / Total flying hours:

16177

Copilot / Total flying hours:

406

Aircraft flight hours:

26158

Circumstances:

The crew was performing a cargo flight from Montevideo to Buenos Aires on behalf of DHL. The aircraft departed runway 24 at Montevideo-Carrasco Airport at 1945LT and the crew was cleared to climb to FL080. While reaching a height of 4,500 feet, the aircraft entered an uncontrolled descent and crashed in the sea at a speed of 570 knots which caused its disintegration off Flores Island. Few debris were found the following day floating on water but the main wreckage was localized two weeks later about one NM south of Flores Island. The CVR was found on 02AUG2012 but was unreadable as the content was concerning the last 30 minutes of the precedent flight. On 11FEB2013, fishermen found the cargo door in their fishnet. No trace of the cargo nor the crew was ever found.

Probable cause:

Investigations determined that both engines were running normally at impact, that no propeller blades were lost during descent, that fuel was not contaminated and that no problems occurred on the on electrical system. Meteorological Office confirmed that severe icing conditions prevailed at the time of the accident between FL010 and FL150. The loss of control was the consequence of erroneous indications of the flight instruments, associated with the possible formation of crystalline ice on the aircraft' structure, causing a loss of situational awareness of the crew.

Final Report:

Crash of a Fokker F27 Friendship 500 in Melo

Date & Time: Apr 27, 2004 at 0415 LT

Type of aircraft:

Fokker F27 Friendship

Operator:

Registration:

N715FE

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Cargo

Survivors:

Site:

Executive/Corporate/Business

Schedule:

Buenos Aires – Porto Alegre – Campinas

MSN:

10468

YOM:

1971

Flight number:

FDX7145

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The crew departed Buenos Aires-Ezeiza-Ministro Pistarini Airport on a night cargo service to Campinas-Viracopos with an intermediate stop in Porto Alegre. While cruising at an altitude of 17,000 feet, smoke was detected in the cargo compartment. The crew elected to extinguish the fire but without success. The crew contacted ATC, declared an emergency and attempted to divert to Montevideo Airport but ATC suggested the crew to divert to Melo which was the nearest airport. As this airfield was closed to traffic at this time, ATC contacted a night guard who switched on the runway lights and alerted the local emergency services. The aircraft landed 340 metres past the runway 07 threshold and stopped 640 metres further. The crew evacuated via the cockpit windows and was uninjured. The aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Probable cause:

Numerous oil samples, plant tissues, and several animals that were transported, would have reacted on contact with an exothermic chemical reaction and associated combustion. The event originated with the spilling of liquid from containers not suitable for differential pressure, with little excess capacity for expansion and filled with indiscriminate materials. Low stringency in filling forms for description of product delivered for shipment in company offices and little control or careless handling of the load would have contributed to the occurrence of the accident.

Crash of a Piper PA-42 Cheyenne III in Treinta y Tres

Date & Time: Mar 20, 1998 at 1315 LT

Type of aircraft:

Piper PA-42 Cheyenne

Operator:

Registration:

CX-ROU

Flight Phase:

Takeoff (climb)

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Treinta y Tres - Montevideo

MSN:

42-8001074

YOM:

1982

Location:

Treinta y Tres

Country:

Region:

Embraer EMB-110 Bandeirante

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

During the takeoff roll, at a speed of 90 knots, the captain decided to abort. Unable to stop within the remaining distance, the aircraft overran and came to rest 270 metres further against an earth mound. All six occupants escaped with minor injuries and the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. The grassy runway used by the crew is 1,008 metres long and the last portion of 300 metres was waterlogged.

Crash of a Douglas DC-9-32 near Nuevo Berlin: 74 killed

Date & Time: Oct 10, 1997 at 2210 LT

Type of aircraft:

Douglas DC-9

Operator:

Registration:

LV-WEG

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

Plain, Valley

Schedule:

Posadas - Buenos Aires

MSN:

47446

YOM:

1969

Flight number:

AU2553

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Captain / Total flying hours:

9238

Captain / Total hours on type:

177.00

Copilot / Total flying hours:

2910

Copilot / Total hours on type:

1384

Aircraft flight hours:

56854

Aircraft flight cycles:

54800

Circumstances:

The aircraft departed Posadas-Libertador General José de San Martín Airport at 2118LT on a regular scheduled flight to Buenos Aires, carrying 69 passengers and five crew members. While cruising at an altitude of 35,000 feet, weather conditions deteriorated with cumulonimbus reported till 49,000 feet, stormy weather, icing conditions and severe turbulences with winds up to 80 km/h and an OAT of -59° C. The crew modified his route and entered the Montevideo FIR without contacting Montevideo ATC. At 2204LT, the aircraft entered an area with severe icing conditions and three minutes later, the copilot (pilot-in-command) initiated a descent without prior permission. Meanwhile, the captain contacted Ezeiza Control, requesting permission to descend. Ezeiza Control radioed that the flight was over Uruguay territory and that they needed to contact Montevideo Control for permission. At 2209:17, Montevideo ATC cleared the crew to descend to FL257, an altitude reached at 2210:25. During the descent the first officer complained that his airspeed indicator did not seem to be working correctly. Descending through FL300, the first officer extended the slats. The pilots were trained to extend slats when recovering from approach to stall situations at 10,000 - 12,000 feet. However, the actual airspeed at the time of extension was higher than permitted. This exceeded the design limit, causing an asymmetry. The aircraft entered an uncontrolled descent and crashed in a near vertical attitude in an open field located about 21 km east of Nuevo Berlin. The aircraft disintegrated on impact and all 74 occupants were killed. At the point of impact, a cratere of 10 metres deep by 30 metres wide was found. The accident was not survivable. It was reported that that the airspeed suddenly increased from 200 knots to 450 knots in four seconds, probably after the Pitot tubes got iced.

Probable cause:

The immediate cause of the accident was likely that at an altitude of 30,000 feet, the first officer, who was the pilot-in-command, found himself in flight conditions which induced him to extend the slats. This manoeuvre was completed at a speed much higher than the limit of the structural design of the slats, and their extension caused an asymmetry and a subsequent loss of control from which a recovery was not possible. The copilot's interpretation as to the need to extend the slats would have been a result of erroneous indications of low speed (IAS), caused by blockage of the Pitot tubes which resulted from icing conditions while cruising in clouds with an extreme OAT of -59° C. It was not possible to determine if the obstruction was caused by the crew by not activating the heating system via the selector switch, or failure of that system.
The following contributing factors were identified:
a) No indication of Mach number on the speed indicators installed in the accident aircraft within its flight envelope, with air speeds below 250 KIAS.
b) Lack of crew training in flight instrument failures and upset recovery.
c) Lack of crew training in the recovery of approach to stall in the DC-9 aircraft in "clean configuration" in accordance with the procedures specified in the FCOM, section 5, 10-0-0, code 30.
d) Lack of instruction and pilot training in crew resource management (CRM).
e) Absence of a warning light Pitot/Stall-Heater OFF on the annunciator panel.
f) Deficiency in operational procedures.

Final Report:

Crash of an Embraer EMB-110C Bandeirante near Montevideo

Date & Time: Feb 25, 1991

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

T-581

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Site:

Plain, Valley

MSN:

110-079

YOM:

1975

Location:

Montevideo-Carrasco

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

While descending to Montevideo-Carrasco Airport, both engines failed simultaneously. The crew completed an emergency landing in an open field located 11 km from the airport. All occupants escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. The aircraft had the dual registration CX-BJK (civil) and T-581 (military).

Probable cause:

Double engine failure on approach due to fuel exhaustion.

Crash of a Piper PA-31-325 Navajo C/R in Montevideo: 2 killed

Date & Time: Aug 19, 1980

Type of aircraft:

Piper PA-31-310 Navajo

Operator:

Taxis Aéreos Uruguayos

Registration:

CX-BMT

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

Location:

Montevideo-Carrasco

Country:

Region:

ALAS - Atlantida Linea Aérea Sudamericana

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

On approach to Montevideo-Carrasco Airport, the pilot passed out. The pilot elected to take control of the aircraft that lost height and crashed. Both occupants were killed. The passenger was not familiar with piloting techniques.

Crash of a Canadair CL-44-6 in Montevideo

Date & Time: Oct 10, 1979

Type of aircraft:

Canadair CL-44

Operator:

Registration:

CX-BKD

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Cargo

Survivors:

Site:

MSN:

YOM:

1960

Location:

Montevideo-Carrasco

Country:

Region:

Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3)

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

On approach to Montevideo-Carrasco Airport, the crew encountered technical difficulties with the right main gear that would not deploy. The gear was recycled manually and all three green lights came on in the cockpit, indicating that all three landing gears were down and locked. Upon touchdown, the right main gear collapsed, causing the right wing to struck the runway surface. Out of control, the airplane veered off runway to the right and came to rest in a grassy area. All six occupants escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Probable cause:

The cause of the landing gear collapse could not be determined.

Crash of a Douglas C-47A-75-DL in Artigas: 44 killed

Date & Time: Feb 10, 1978 at 1120 LT

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

T-511

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Artigas - Montevideo

MSN:

19301

YOM:

1943

Flight number:

Uruguay 511

Location:

Artigas

Country:

Region: