1975 Agadir Royal Air Maroc Boeing 707 crash

Last updated
1975 Agadir Royal Air Maroc Boeing 707 crash
Jordanian World Airways Boeing 707-300 JY-AEE.jpg
JY-AEE, the aircraft involved, seen at Frankfurt Airport, the day before the crash
Accident
DateAugust 3, 1975 (1975-08-03)
Summary Controlled flight into terrain due to pilot error
SiteNear Tamri, Morocco
30°35′12″N9°24′40″W / 30.586776°N 9.411217°W / 30.586776; -9.411217
Aircraft
Aircraft type Boeing 707-321C
Operator Jordanian World Airways on behalf of Royal Air Maroc
Registration JY-AEE
Flight origin Le Bourget Airport, Paris, France
Destination Inezgane Airport, Agadir, Morocco
Occupants188
Passengers181
Crew7
Fatalities188
Survivors0

On August 3, 1975, Royal Air Maroc chartered a Boeing 707 passenger flight from Le Bourget Airport in Paris to Inezgane Airport in Agadir which crashed into a mountain on approach to Agadir Inezgane Airport, Morocco. All 188 passengers and crew on board were killed. It is the deadliest aviation disaster involving a Boeing 707 and the deadliest in Morocco. [1]

Flight

The aircraft involved in the accident, while still operating for Pan Am Boeing 707-321C, Pan Am JP6922271.jpg
The aircraft involved in the accident, while still operating for Pan Am

The 707, owned by Jordanian World Airways, a subsidiary of Alia, was chartered by the national airline of Morocco, Royal Air Maroc, to fly 181 Moroccan workers and their families from France home for the holidays. [2] The aircraft approached Agadir in the early hours of the morning at the time of the crash. There was heavy fog in the area and the aircraft was flying in from the northeast over the Atlas Mountains. At around 04:25 local time, as the 707 was descending from 8,000 feet (2,400 m) for a runway 29 approach, its right wingtip and no. 4 (outer-right) engine struck a peak at 2,400 feet (730 m) altitude. Part of the wing separated. The aircraft lost control and crashed into a ravine.

Rescue teams found wreckage over a wide area. The extent of the destruction was such that nothing bigger than 1 square metre (10 sq ft) in size was found.

The cause of the crash was determined to be pilot error in not ensuring positive course guidance before beginning descent. The aircraft had not followed the usual north-south corridor generally used for flights to Agadir. [3] [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Air Maroc</span> Flag carrier of Morocco

Royal Air Maroc is the Moroccan national carrier, as well as the country's largest airline, ranking among the largest in Africa.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1973.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1974. 1974 had been deemed as "the single worst year in airline history" although this has since been surpassed.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1975.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air China Flight 129</span> 2002 aviation accident in South Korea

Air China Flight 129 (CCA129/CA129) was a scheduled international passenger flight, operated by Air China, from Beijing Capital International Airport to Gimhae International Airport in Busan. On 15 April 2002, the aircraft on this route, a Boeing 767-200ER, crashed into a hill near the airport, killing 129 of the 166 people on board.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Independent Air Flight 1851</span> 1989 plane crash on Pico Alto, the Azores

On 8 February 1989, Independent Air Flight 1851, a Boeing 707 on an American charter flight from Bergamo, Italy, to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, struck Pico Alto while on approach to Santa Maria Airport in the Azores for a scheduled stopover. The aircraft was destroyed, with the loss of all 144 people on board, resulting in the deadliest plane crash in Portugal's history. All of the passengers on board were Italian and all of the crew were Americans. The crash is also known as "The disaster of the Azores".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pan Am Flight 812</span> 1974 passenger plane crash in Denpasar, Indonesia

Pan Am Flight 812 (PA812), operated by a Pan Am Boeing 707-321B registered N446PA and named Clipper Climax, was a scheduled international flight from Hong Kong to Los Angeles, California, with intermediate stops at Denpasar, Sydney, Nadi, and Honolulu. The airplane briefly appeared in the Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory movie in 1971. On April 22, 1974, it crashed into rough mountainous terrain while preparing for a runway 09 approach to Denpasar after a 4-hour 20-minute flight from Hong Kong. All 107 people on board perished. The location of the accident was about 42.5 nautical miles northwest of Ngurah Rai International Airport. Until the 1991 Jakarta Indonesian Air Force C-130 crash, it was the deadliest aviation accident to happen on Indonesian soil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">EgyptAir Flight 864</span> 1976 aviation accident

EgyptAir Flight 864 was a flight from Rome Fiumicino Airport to Tokyo International Airport, via Cairo, Bombay, and Bangkok. On 25 December 1976, the Boeing 707 crashed into an industrial complex in Bangkok. All 52 people on board were killed, plus 19 on the ground in the crash.

Air France has been in operation since 1933. Its aircraft have been involved in a number of major accidents and incidents. The deadliest accident of the airline occurred on June 1, 2009, when Air France Flight 447, an Airbus A330-203, flying from Rio de Janeiro to Paris crashed into the Atlantic Ocean with 228 fatalities. A selected list of the most noteworthy of these events is given below.

Inezgane Airport or Agadir Inezgane Airport is an airport in Agadir, the capital city of the Souss-Massa region in Morocco. The airport is located approximately 14 km (9 mi) northwest of Agadir's Al Massira Airport. After being replaced by the Al Massira airport for civilian service, it is now a military air base.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Air Maroc Flight 630</span> 1994 deliberate plane crash in Morocco

Royal Air Maroc Flight 630 was a passenger flight on 21 August 1994 which crashed approximately ten minutes after takeoff from Agadir–Al Massira Airport in Morocco. All 44 passengers and crew on board were killed. It was the deadliest ATR 42 aircraft crash at that point in time. An investigation showed that the crash was deliberately caused by one of the pilots.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1973 Kano Nigeria Airways Boeing 707 crash</span> 1973 plane crash in Nigeria

On 22 January 1973, a Nigeria Airways Boeing 707 crashed at Kano International Airport while attempting to land in high winds. The crash killed 176 passengers and crew. There were 26 survivors. The crash remains the deadliest aviation disaster ever in Nigeria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air France Flight 212 (1968)</span> Fatal aviation accident in Guadeloupe

Air France Flight 212 was a scheduled passenger flight from Santiago, Chile to Paris with scheduled stops at Lima, Quito, Bogotá, Caracas, Pointe-à-Pitre, Vila do Porto, and Lisbon. On March 6, 1968, the Boeing 707 operating the flight, named "Chateau de Lavoute Polignac", crashed while approaching Le Raizet Airport in Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, killing all 63 occupants of the plane.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tamri</span> Rural commune and town in Souss-Massa, Morocco

Tamri is a small town and rural commune in Agadir-Ida Ou Tanane Prefecture, Souss-Massa, Morocco. At the time of the 2004 census, the commune had a total population of 17,442 people living in 2927 households.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1973 Royal Air Maroc Sud Aviation Caravelle crash</span> 1973 aviation accident

The 1973 Royal Air Maroc Sud Aviation Caravelle crash occurred on December 22, 1973, when a Sobelair Sud Aviation Caravelle SE-210 crashed near Tangier, Morocco. All 106 people on board were killed.

References

  1. Ranter, Harro. "Accident description". aviation-safety.net. Aviation Safety Network.
  2. "188 on Charter Jet Killed In Moroccan Crash in Fog". The New York Times . August 4, 1975. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
  3. Accident Synopsis 08031975 [usurped]
  4. "Un Boeing jordanien s'écrase près d'Agadir. CATASTROPHE AÉRIENNE AU MAROC: 188 MORTS" [A Jordanian Boeing crashes near Agadir. AERIAL DISASTER IN MOROCCO: 188 DEATHS](PDF) (in French). Retrieved August 9, 2019.