Aerolineas Argentinas Flight 322
Encyclopedia
Aerolíneas Argentinas
Flight 322 was a scheduled Buenos Aires
–São Paulo
–Port of Spain
–New York City
international passenger service, operated with a Comet 4
, registration LV-AHR, that crashed during climbout on the early stages of its second leg, when it collided with tree tops shortly after take-off from Viracopos-Campinas International Airport on . There were 52 fatalities, 40 of them passengers.
arrived from Buenos Aires
, Argentina
and landed at Viracopos-Campinas International Airport , 62 miles (99.8 km) north of São Paulo
, as an intermediate stop. It took off at 05:38, bound for Piarco International Airport
, Trinidad
, with New York City
as its final destination. After reaching an altitude of about 100 metres (328.1 ft), the aircraft lost altitude, collided with eucalyptus
trees and crashed into the ground; its fuel tanks exploded on impact. All 52 people on board were killed in the disaster.
The weather conditions at the time of the accident were "dark night due to 7/8 (broken) stratocumulus at 400 metres (1,312.3 ft) and to 8/8 coverage (overcast) by altostratus at 2100 metres (6,889.8 ft)." According to the Brazilian Air Ministry, the weather conditions did not contribute to the accident.
The investigation revealed that the first officer was seated in the left seat of the flight deck
, which the investigators saw as an indication that he was receiving flight instruction from the captain during the accident flight.
The Brazilian Air Ministry determined the following Probable Cause:
The Argentinian government issued the following statement:
Aerolíneas Argentinas
Aerolíneas Argentinas , formally Aerolíneas Argentinas S.A., is Argentina's largest airline and serves as the country's flag carrier. Owned in its majority by the Argentine Government, the airline is headquartered in the Torre Bouchard, located in San Nicolás, Buenos Aires...
Flight 322 was a scheduled Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
–São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
–Port of Spain
Port of Spain
Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after San Fernando and Chaguanas. The city has a municipal population of 49,031 , a metropolitan population of 128,026 and a transient daily population...
–New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
international passenger service, operated with a Comet 4
De Havilland Comet
The de Havilland DH 106 Comet was the world's first commercial jet airliner to reach production. Developed and manufactured by de Havilland at the Hatfield, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom headquarters, it first flew in 1949 and was a landmark in aeronautical design...
, registration LV-AHR, that crashed during climbout on the early stages of its second leg, when it collided with tree tops shortly after take-off from Viracopos-Campinas International Airport on . There were 52 fatalities, 40 of them passengers.
Flight history
The jetlinerJetliner
Jetliner are an alternative rock band from the USA. They focus on melodic piano based rock and have been compared to Queen and early Elton John, being heavily influenced by early 70s rock. Composed of Adam Paskowitz of The Flys, son of Doc Paskowitz, on piano and lead vocals, Jeff Kluesner on...
arrived from Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and landed at Viracopos-Campinas International Airport , 62 miles (99.8 km) north of São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
, as an intermediate stop. It took off at 05:38, bound for Piarco International Airport
Piarco International Airport
Piarco International Airport is the main airport serving Trinidad and Tobago located in Piarco, a town in northern Trinidad, about east of the capital city, Port of Spain. It is one of two international airports serving the twin isle republic. The other is located on the island of Tobago, A.N.R...
, Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
, with New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
as its final destination. After reaching an altitude of about 100 metres (328.1 ft), the aircraft lost altitude, collided with eucalyptus
Eucalyptus
Eucalyptus is a diverse genus of flowering trees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Members of the genus dominate the tree flora of Australia...
trees and crashed into the ground; its fuel tanks exploded on impact. All 52 people on board were killed in the disaster.
Investigation
The accident was investigated by the Brazilian government with participation from the government of Argentina, the state of registry of the accident aircraft.The weather conditions at the time of the accident were "dark night due to 7/8 (broken) stratocumulus at 400 metres (1,312.3 ft) and to 8/8 coverage (overcast) by altostratus at 2100 metres (6,889.8 ft)." According to the Brazilian Air Ministry, the weather conditions did not contribute to the accident.
The investigation revealed that the first officer was seated in the left seat of the flight deck
Cockpit
A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft, from which a pilot controls the aircraft. Most modern cockpits are enclosed, except on some small aircraft, and cockpits on large airliners are also physically separated from the cabin...
, which the investigators saw as an indication that he was receiving flight instruction from the captain during the accident flight.
The Brazilian Air Ministry determined the following Probable Cause:
It was presumed that the co-pilot was under flight instruction. If such was the case, the instructor, who was pilot-in-command, may have failed to brief or supervise the co-pilot properly.
The Argentinian government issued the following statement:
Argentina has determined, in the light of information it has gathered, that the cause of the accident was: "Failure to operate under IFRInstrument flight rulesInstrument flight rules are one of two sets of regulations governing all aspects of civil aviation aircraft operations; the other are visual flight rules ....
during a takeoff by night in weather conditions requiring IFR operation and failure to follow the climb procedure for this type of aircraft; a contributory cause was the lack of vigilance by the pilot-in-command during the operations."
External links
- Brazilian Air Ministry accident report on prevac.com.ar (Argentinian aviation safety website, in Spanish)