Aviateca Flight 901
Encyclopedia
Aviateca Flight 901 was a Boeing 737-200 (registration N125GU) that crashed into the San Vicente (volcano)
in El Salvador on approach to the airport on 9 August 1995. The accident killed all 65 passengers and crew on board.
Flight 901 took off on a night time flight from La Aurora International Airport
in Guatemala City
, Guatemala
to El Salvador International Airport
in San Salvador
, El Salvador
. There were 58 passengers and 7 crew on board flight 901. After a 20-minute flight the crew of flight 901 got in contact with air traffic control at El Salvador International Airport
. The controller told flight 901 there was a thunderstorm (heavy rain) over the airport and said to fly over the storm and start their ILS approach downwind and land on runway 07. But the pilots and air traffic control were confused as to the position of the aircraft as they started their approach and the aircraft went into the same bad weather as the flight crew flew over. Then, as flight 901 was at 5,000 feet, the Ground Proximity Warning System
had sounded and power was applied but too late. Flight 901 crashed into the side of San Vicente (volcano)
and burst into flames. The accident killed all 65 passengers and crew on board.
Just before taking off a few passengers stepped out and entered a different flight to San Salvador including an American Jean Bernard Dupoux.
San Vicente (volcano)
San Vicente is a stratovolcano in central El Salvador. It is located next to the town of San Vicente and is the second highest volcano in El Salvador. In the indigenous language Nahuat, Chichontepec means the mountain of the two breasts, because its double summit resembles a woman's bosom...
in El Salvador on approach to the airport on 9 August 1995. The accident killed all 65 passengers and crew on board.
Accident
AviatecaAviateca
Aviateca was the state-owned flag carrier of Guatemala, headquartered in Guatemala City. It is now a subsidiary of Grupo TACA.- History :The airline was established on 14 March 1945 as Empresa Guatemalteca de Aviación S. A., which was shortened to Aviateca. It was formed as the successor to...
Flight 901 took off on a night time flight from La Aurora International Airport
La Aurora International Airport
La Aurora International Airport serves Guatemala City, Guatemala. It is located south of Guatemala City's center and from Antigua. It is administered by the Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil....
in Guatemala City
Guatemala City
Guatemala City , is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Guatemala and Central America...
, Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
to El Salvador International Airport
El Salvador International Airport
El Salvador International Airport , commonly known as Comalapa International Airport or Cuscatlán International Airport, is located about from San Salvador in El Salvador...
in San Salvador
San Salvador
The city of San Salvador the capital and largest city of El Salvador, which has been designated a Gamma World City. Its complete name is La Ciudad de Gran San Salvador...
, El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
. There were 58 passengers and 7 crew on board flight 901. After a 20-minute flight the crew of flight 901 got in contact with air traffic control at El Salvador International Airport
El Salvador International Airport
El Salvador International Airport , commonly known as Comalapa International Airport or Cuscatlán International Airport, is located about from San Salvador in El Salvador...
. The controller told flight 901 there was a thunderstorm (heavy rain) over the airport and said to fly over the storm and start their ILS approach downwind and land on runway 07. But the pilots and air traffic control were confused as to the position of the aircraft as they started their approach and the aircraft went into the same bad weather as the flight crew flew over. Then, as flight 901 was at 5,000 feet, the Ground Proximity Warning System
Ground Proximity Warning System
A ground proximity warning system is a system designed to alert pilots if their aircraft is in immediate danger of flying into the ground or an obstacle. The United States Federal Aviation Administration defines GPWS as a type of terrain awareness warning system...
had sounded and power was applied but too late. Flight 901 crashed into the side of San Vicente (volcano)
San Vicente (volcano)
San Vicente is a stratovolcano in central El Salvador. It is located next to the town of San Vicente and is the second highest volcano in El Salvador. In the indigenous language Nahuat, Chichontepec means the mountain of the two breasts, because its double summit resembles a woman's bosom...
and burst into flames. The accident killed all 65 passengers and crew on board.
Just before taking off a few passengers stepped out and entered a different flight to San Salvador including an American Jean Bernard Dupoux.