LaMia Flight 2933

LaMia Flight 2933

Avro RJ85 serial number E.2348 (the aircraft involved) in 2013, bearing its previous registration marks
Accident summary
Date 28 November 2016 (2016-11-28)
Summary Under investigation
Site
Cerro Gordo, La Unión, Antioquia (Colombia)


5°58′42″N 75°25′05″W / 5.978344°N 75.417975°W / 5.978344; -75.417975Coordinates: 5°58′42″N 75°25′05″W / 5.978344°N 75.417975°W / 5.978344; -75.417975[1]

Passengers 68
Crew 9
Fatalities 71
Injuries (non-fatal) 6
Survivors 6
Aircraft type Avro RJ85
Operator LaMia
Registration CP-2933
Flight origin Viru Viru International Airport, Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia
Destination José María Córdova International Airport, Rionegro, Colombia
Flight path during the last 15 minutes. Green line indicates the period during which the aircraft was in a holding pattern at Flight level 210 (approximately 21,000 feet altitude) (2:46:08–2:53:09 UTC). Orange star indicates the location where ADS-B signals were lost (2:55:48 UTC). The crash site is indicated in red.

LaMia Flight 2933 (LMI2933) was a charter flight of an Avro RJ85, operated by LaMia, that crashed shortly after 10:00 pm local time, on 28 November 2016. The aircraft was transporting the Brazilian Chapecoense football squad from Viru Viru International Airport in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, to José María Córdova International Airport in Colombia. The airliner carried 77 people: 9 crew and 68 passengers, which included the players, coaching staff, club staff, 2 guests and 21 journalists. The team was en route to play the first leg of the 2016 Copa Sudamericana Finals in Medellín, against Colombian team Atlético Nacional.[2][3][4] Seventy-one people died and six survived. Of the Chapecoense players, nineteen died and three survived. Due in part to the pilot declaring a fuel emergency,[5] and that the distance between the source and destination airports was very near to, or exceeded, the maximum rated range of the aircraft, it has been speculated that the cause of the crash was fuel exhaustion.

Aircraft and operator

The aircraft was an Avro RJ85, registration CP-2933,[1] serial number E.2348,[6] which first flew on 26 March 1999.[7] After service with other airlines and a period in storage between 2010 and 2013, it was acquired by LaMia, a Venezuelan-owned Bolivian airline.[6][8]

Flight and crash

Altitude and speed from ADS-B data. The signals were lost at 2:55:48 UTC.
Blue route indicates the originally planned route. Red route indicates the actual route. Maximum distance without fueling increased from 2,041 km (1,102 nm) to 2,960 km (1,598 nm).
Workers amidst the aircraft's wreckage on a Colombian mountainside
Recovery of bodies

The aircraft was on a flight from Viru Viru International Airport, in the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, to José María Córdova International Airport, outside Medellín in Colombia, carrying 68 passengers and 9 crew members.[9] Among the passengers were members of the Brazilian Associação Chapecoense de Futebol who were travelling to play their away leg of the Final for the 2016 Copa Sudamericana in Medellín against Atlético Nacional.

Brazil's national aviation authority, the Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil (ANAC – National Civil Aviation Agency), had denied Chapecoense's request to use LaMia's services from São Paulo to Medellín, leading to a stop and change of aircraft in Santa Cruz.[10] In line with the freedoms of the air governing international air traffic under the Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation, ANAC had required that the charter operator be Brazilian or Colombian in order for a direct flight to take place. However the club opted to retain LaMia, which had already transported other football clubs,[8] including teams playing in the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL) competitions, and the Argentina national team (who had flown on the same aircraft just 18 days prior).[11] The team flew from São Paulo–Guarulhos International Airport, to Santa Cruz de la Sierra, on a Boliviana de Aviación commercial flight, before embarking on the chartered aircraft.[12]

Originally the flight was planned to have a fuel stop at the city of Cobija, on Bolivia's border with Brazil.[13][14] But the flight's late departure meant the aircraft would not arrive at Cobija prior to the airport's closing time. The flight plan was reportedly altered to include a refueling stop in Bogotá instead.[12] The distance between Santa Cruz and Medellín airports is 1,598 nautical miles (2,959 km; 1,839 mi).[15] A fuel stop in Cobija would have broken the flight into two segments: an initial segment of 514 nautical miles (952 km; 952,000 m) to Cobija followed by a flight of 1,101 nautical miles (2,039 km; 1,267 mi) to Medellín, a total of 1,615 nautical miles (2,991 km; 1,859 mi).[15] Bogota's airport is 1,486 nautical miles (2,752 km; 1,710 mi) from Santa Cruz's airport and 116 nautical miles (215 km; 133 mi) from Medellín's.

Under standard conditions, the RJ-85 has a range of approximately 1,600 nautical miles (3,000 km; 1,800 mi) with a payload of 7,800 kilograms (17,196 lb).[16] Using the International Air Transport Association (IATA)-recommended estimate for weight of passengers and luggage of 100 kilograms (220 lb)[17] would place the aircraft's payload at 7,700 kilograms (16,976 lb) meaning a flight from Santa Cruz to Medellín would be at the limit of the aircraft's capability. IATA's 100-kg recommendation, however, is based upon observations of international scheduled passenger flights consisting of a mix of passenger ages and genders. Failure to properly account for the weight of predominantly adult male passengers and equipment has been a contributing factor in previous crashes including the 1985 crash of Arrow Air Flight 1285 carrying US military personnel.

At 22:00 local time on 28 November (03:00 UTC, 29 November), the crew declared electrical and fuel emergencies due to fuel exhaustion while flying in Colombian airspace between the municipalities of La Ceja and La Unión.[18][19][20] During the last 15 minutes the flight had completed two laps of a racetrack holding pattern, adding about 54 nautical miles (100 km; 62 mi) to its flight length. The crash site is along the approach path to José María Córdova International Airport's runway 01, 10 nautical miles (19 km; 12 mi) south of the runway.

Rescue

Helicopters from the Colombian Air Force were initially unable to get to the site because of heavy fog in the area,[1] while first aid workers arrived two hours after the crash to find debris strewn across an area about 100 metres (330 ft) in diameter.[21] It was not until 02:00 on 29 November that the first survivor arrived at a hospital: Alan Ruschel, one of the members of the Chapecoense team.[21] Seven people were found alive in the wreckage although one of them, first choice goalkeeper Danilo, died shortly after arriving at a hospital. The last survivor to be found was footballer Neto, who was discovered at 05:40.[22] Chapecoense reserve goalkeeper Jakson Follmann, who was among survivors, later underwent a potentially life-saving leg amputation.[23] Including Danilo, 71 of the 77 occupants died as a result of the crash; the number of dead was initially thought to be 75 but it was later revealed that 4 people had not boarded the aircraft.[24]

Investigation

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Unit of Colombia's Unidad Administrativa Especial de Aeronáutica Civil (UAEAC – Special Administrative Unit of Civil Aeronautics) is investigating the accident and requested assistance from the aircraft's manufacturer BAE Systems and the British Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) as the investigative body of the state of the manufacturer. A team of three accident AAIB investigators was deployed.[25] They were joined by investigators from the Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil of Bolivia.[26]

Colombian Air Force personnel extracted the bodies of 70 victims from the wreckage and took them to an air force base. They were then taken to the Instituto de Medicina Legal in Medellín for identification.[27]

The flight attendant who survived the accident stated that the aircraft ran out of fuel.[28] The claim is being investigated by the UAEAC.[29] Crews of other aircraft reported that they heard the pilot of Flight 2933 saying over the radio that he was running out of fuel and needed to make an emergency landing.[30] The person in charge of the investigation stated that there "is no evidence of fuel in the aircraft" and the aircraft did not explode when it crashed.[1] The suspected cause of the crash is fuel exhaustion.[9]

On the afternoon of 29 November the UAEAC reported that both flight recorders had been recovered undamaged.[1]

Reactions

Governmental

Brazilian and Mercosur flags at half staff at the National Congress Building in Brasília

Following the crash, Bolivia's aviation authority suspended LaMia's operating licence.[31]

Brazilian President Michel Temer declared three days of national mourning and requested that personnel from Brazil's embassy to Colombia in Bogotá be moved to Medellín to better assist the survivors and the families of the victims.[32]

The United Kingdom, through its Foreign and Commonwealth Office, sent its condolences to those affected by the accident.[33]

Sports

All CONMEBOL-related activities were suspended, including both legs of the Copa Sudamericana final, scheduled for 30 November and 7 December,[34] and the second leg of the Copa do Brasil Final.[35] Besides changing their profile pictures on social media to a black version of Chapecoense's badge and issuing messages of solidarity,[36] other Brazilian teams offered to loan the club players for the next year[34] and asked the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) to exempt it from relegation for the next three years.[37] Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras, winner of the Brazilian national league title, sent a formal request to the CBF to pay tribute in its last fixture of the season by wearing Chapecoense's jersey. Atlético Nacional, Chapecoense's opponents-to-be in the final, asked CONMEBOL to honor Chapecoense by awarding them with the Copa Sudamericana title, stating that "for our part, and forever, Chapecoense are champions of the 2016 Copa Sudamericana".[38] The first response of the CONMEBOL regarding the request, in the words of its President Alejandro Dominguez when arriving in Medellín, was: "It is very worthy [of consideration]. However, it is time to get to work, to talk with the Brazilian and Colombian [officials], with those of Atlético Nacional. I do not have a position on the suggestion. The gesture is commendable. I did not have time to talk about it [during my flight]."[39]

Some football teams in South America, such as Racing Club and Huracán in Argentina,[40] and Club Nacional de Football in Uruguay,[41] announced that they would play their coming league fixtures with the crest of Chapecoense on their shirts as a tribute.

Chapecoense also plans to honour the victims by a mass wake at Condá Arena stadium in Chapecó, the small Brazilian city in Santa Catarina state where the team is based.[42]

Other

Avianca, Colombia's flag carrier and largest airline, provided 44 psychologists to help in the counseling of the families of the victims. The airline, by request of the Colombian and Brazilian governments, also provided logistical support and transportation to Brazilian medical personnel which are involved in the identification of the deceased.[43] On Twitter, Avianca expressed its regrets over the incident and stated that "our prayers are with the families of the victims".[44]

During an interview, Roberto Canessa, a member of a Uruguayan rugby union team that was travelling to an away game in 1972 when their aircraft crashed in what became known as the Andes flight disaster, expressed that he wanted to help the survivors of the crash.[45]

Survivors

The surviving players were Alan Ruschel,[46] Jakson Follmann[47] and Neto.[22] The other survivors were a journalist and two members of the flight crew.[47][48] In an interview with the press, one of the surviving crew members said that he survived because he followed the emergency protocols by putting his carry-on suitcase between his legs and sitting in the brace position,[49] while several other passengers panicked and stood upright before impact, which could have led to their deaths. Team goalkeeper Danilo initially survived the crash and was taken to a hospital; he was able to telephone his wife, but later died there.[50][51]

Notable fatalities

Chapecoense players

Chapecoense staff

Media

Guests

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Hradecky, Simon. "Crash: LAMIA Bolivia RJ85 near Medellin on Nov 28th 2016, electrical problems, impact with terrain". Aviation Herald. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  2. ↑ Lafuente, Javier; Marcos, Ana (29 November 2016). "Un avión que transportaba al equipo de fútbol brasileño del Chapecoense sufre un accidente en Colombia" [An aircraft transporting Brazilian football team Chapecoense suffers an accident in Colombia]. El País (in Spanish).
  3. ↑ "Plane Carrying Football Players From Brazil Crashes In Colombia". NDTV. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  4. ↑ "Plane carrying Brazilian football team Chapecoense crashes in Colombia". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  5. ↑ REAL ATC Lamia Avro RJ85 CRASH near Medellin, Colombia on YouTube
  6. 1 2 "CP-2933 LAMIA British Aerospace Avro RJ85 – cn E2348". Planespotters. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  7. ↑ "CP-2933 accident description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  8. 1 2 Torres, Fabián (29 November 2016). "Accidente avión Chapecoense: El piloto del avión siniestrado también era el dueño de la aerolínea LaMia" [Chapecoense aircraft accident: The pilot of the LaMia aircraft was also the owner of the airline]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  9. 1 2 "Colombia plane crash: 71 dead on Brazil soccer team's charter flight". CNN. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  10. ↑ "Al Chapecoense lo hicieron cambiar de avión" [Chapecoense was made to change aircraft]. El Tiempo (in Spanish). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  11. ↑ "Messi y la Selección argentina viajaron en el mismo avión del accidente hace 18 días" [Messi and the Argentine team travelled in the accident aircraft 18 days ago]. Infobae (in Spanish). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  12. 1 2 "Before Deadly Crash In Colombia, Pilot Said He was out of Fuel". NPR.org. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  13. ↑ "Why the Chapecoense football team's plane ran out of fuel". The Economist. December 1, 2016. The private jet was scheduled to stop for refuelling in Cobija, in Bolivia’s north.
  14. ↑ "Before Deadly Crash In Colombia, Pilot Said He Was Out Of Fuel". NPR. December 1, 2016. Vargas says there was a planned refueling stop in Cobija, Brazil, but that the delay meant they'd have to refuel in Bogotá, Colombia, instead.
  15. 1 2 "Great Circle Mapper". www.gcmap.com. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  16. ↑ Richter, Jan. "LAMIA Avro RJ-85 crashed near Medellin with 81 on board". JACDEC. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  17. ↑ "Tenth Session of the Statistics Division, Available Capacity and Average Passenger Mass" (PDF). International Civil Aviation Organization. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
  18. ↑ Ostrower, John. "Colombia plane crash: Jet ran out of fuel, pilot said". CNN. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  19. ↑ "Controller Audio Recording - LMI 2933 Pilot: (We are) in complete electrical and fuel failure". YouTube. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  20. ↑ "Accidente de Chapecoense: los rescatistas tienen que subir media hora por la montaña a pie" [Chapecoense accident: rescuers have to climb half an hour up the mountain on foot]. La Nación (in Spanish). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  21. 1 2 "Son seis los sobrevivientes del accidente aéreo en Antioquia" [Six survivors of the aircraft crash in Antioquia]. El Tiempo (in Spanish). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  22. 1 2 "Accidente de avión en el que viajaba Chapecoense deja 75 personas muertas" [Aircraft crash involving Chapecoense leaves 75 people dead]. Caracol.tv (in Spanish). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  23. ↑ "Goalie Follmann's leg amputated, Neto suffering from head trauma". Fox News Latino. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  24. ↑ Lawlor, David (29 November 2016). "Colombia plane crash: 71 dead and six survivors on flight carrying Chapecoense football team". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  25. ↑ "The AAIB is sending a team of inspectors to Colombia" (Press release). Air Accidents Investigation Branch. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  26. ↑ Cuiza, Paulo (29 November 2016). "DGAC envía comisión de investigadores a Colombia y asegura que nave de Lamia partió de Bolivia en perfectas condiciones" [DGAC sends panel of investigators to Colombia and states that the LaMia aircraft left Bolivia in perfect condition]. La Razón (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  27. ↑ "Corpos de vítimas de queda do voo da Chapecoense já estão todos no IML de Medellín". G1 (in Portuguese). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  28. ↑ Hartley-Parkinson, Richard. "Final panicked words of pilot in Colombian plane crash as he 'ran out of fuel'". Metro. Associated Newspapers Ltd. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  29. ↑ "Brazilian football team's plane crashes in Colombia killing 76". Sky News. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  30. ↑ "Soccer crash survivors treated in Colombia as investigation begins". Reuters UK. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  31. ↑ "Chapecoense air crash: Bolivia suspends LaMia airline". BBC News. 1 December 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  32. ↑ "Temer decreta luto de três dias pela tragédia com time da Chapecoense" (in Portuguese). G1. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  33. ↑ "South America at FCO on Twitter" (in Spanish). Twitter. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  34. 1 2 "Brazil football team Chapecoense in Colombia plane crash". BBC News. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  35. ↑ "Final da Copa do Brasil é adiada após tragédia com voo da Chapecoense" (in Portuguese). Globo. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  36. ↑ Lang, Jack (29 November 2016). "Chapecoense fans gather in grief at football club's stadium in Brazil". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  37. ↑ "Clubes se unem para ajudar Chape com empréstimos de jogadores". Globo Esportes (in Portuguese). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  38. ↑ "Gesto de grandeza" [Grand Gesture] (in Spanish). Ole. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  39. ↑ "Chapecoense: Conmebol se expresó sobre título de la Copa Sudamericana" [Chapecoense: CONMEBOL commented on South American Cup title]. Peru.com (in Spanish). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 30 November 2016. Es muy valorable. Sin embargo, es el momento de ponernos a trabajar, de hablar con los pares de Brasil y con los de Colombia, con los de Atlético Nacional. No estoy en condiciones sobre el punto. Es loable el gesto. No tuve tiempo de hablar de eso en el avión
  40. ↑ "Más solidariadad" [More solidarity]. Olé. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  41. ↑ "El homenaje de Nacional a Chapecoense" [Homage to Chapecoense by Nacional]. Ovación Digital. 30 November 2016. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  42. ↑ Phillips, Tom (2016-11-29). "Chapecoense plane crash: victims to be honoured with mass wake at stadium". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2016-11-30.
  43. ↑ "La aerolínea tuvo que acudir hasta a féretros prestados" (in Spanish). ElTiempo.com. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  44. ↑ "Avianca on Twitter" (in Spanish). Twitter. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  45. ↑ "Sobreviviente del 'Milagro de los Andes': "La vida es como viene, no como uno quiere"" [Survivor of the 'Miracle of the Andes': "Life is as it comes, not how one wants it"].
  46. ↑ "Plane crashes in Colombia with Brazilian football team on board". The Sun. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  47. 1 2 "Avião que transportava equipe da Chapecoense cai na Colômbia". Diário de Pernambuco (in Portuguese). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  48. ↑ Cambará, Pablo (29 November 2016). "Confirman un segundo sobreviviente boliviano". El Deber (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  49. ↑ "'Me salvé porque seguí el protocolo': sobreviviente del avionazo". Milenio (in Spanish). 30 November 2016.
  50. ↑ "Trágico accidente cerca de Medellín del avión que transportaba al equipo brasileño Chapecoense deja 76 muertos". BBC World (in Spanish). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  51. ↑ Rosenbaum, Sophia (29 November 2016). "Brazilian goalie in plane crash called wife just before dying". nypost.com. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  52. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Weaver, Matthew; Malkin, Bonnie (29 November 2016). "Colombia plane crash: Fans gather to mourn Chapecoense footballers among 75 killed – as it happened". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  53. 1 2 Cumming, Jason; Saravia, Laura; Smith, Alexander; Chirbas, Kurt (29 November 2016). "Plane Carrying Brazil's Chapecoense Soccer Team Crashes in Colombia". NBC News. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  54. ↑ "Veja lista de passageiros no avião da Chapecoense que caiu na Colômbia" (in Portuguese). Globo. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  55. ↑ "Voo da Chapecoense tinha 22 profissionais de imprensa, incluindo Mario Sérgio". O Estado de S. Paulo (in Portuguese). 29 November 2016.
  56. ↑ "Além da delegação da Chapecoense, 20 profissionais de imprensa morreram". Jornal do Brasil (in Portuguese). 29 November 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  57. ↑ "Ex-CBN, Deva Pascovicci é o novo contratado do Fox Sports". Comunique.se. 16 February 2016. Retrieved 2016-12-02.

External links

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