Royal Air Maroc Flight 630
Occurrence | |
---|---|
Date | 21 August 1994 |
Summary | Deliberate crash by pilot |
Site | Douar Izounine, Morocco |
Aircraft type | ATR 42-312 |
Operator | Royal Air Maroc |
Registration | CN-CDT |
Passengers | 40 |
Crew | 4 |
Fatalities | 44 |
Survivors | 0 |
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. All 44 passengers and crew on board were killed. At the time, it was the worst incident ever involving an ATR 42 aircraft.[1]
Flight
Flight 630 was a scheduled flight from Agadir, Morocco to Casablanca using an ATR 42 aircraft. At approximately ten minutes into the flight while climbing through 16000 feet, the aircraft entered a steep dive, and crashed into a region of the Atlas Mountains about 32 kilometres (20 mi) north of Agadir.
The crash site was at Douar Izounine, about 32 kilometres (20 mi) north of Agadir. Among the 40 passengers on board were a Kuwaiti prince and his wife. The prince was the brother of Sheik Ahmed al-Mahmoud al-Jabir al-Sabah, Kuwait's minister of defence. At least 20 of the passengers were non-Moroccans. This included eight Italians, five Frenchmen, four Dutch, two Kuwaitis, and one American.[2]
Investigation
The commission that investigated the crash determined that the ATR 42's autopilot was intentionally disconnected by the aircraft's pilot, 32-year-old Younes Khayati, who then deliberately crashed the aircraft.[3] A flight union disputed the suicide explanation.[4]
See also
References
- ^ "Aviation Safety Network".
- ^ "Kuwaiti Prince dies in crash." Associated Press at The Telegraph. Tuesday 23 August 1994. p. 5. Retrieved on 5 November 2013.
- ^ "Crash that killed 44 was pilot suicide." Associated Press at the Altus Times. Thursday 25 August 1994. p. 14. Retrieved on 5 November 2013.
- ^ "Prove suicide accusation, union tells crash probers." Associated Press at The Deseret News. Saturday 27 August 1994. p. A4. Retrieved on 5 November 2013.
- Airliner accidents and incidents involving deliberate crashes
- 1994 in Morocco
- Accidents and incidents involving the ATR 42
- Aviation accident investigations with disputed causes
- Aviation accidents and incidents in 1994
- Aviation accidents and incidents in Morocco
- Mass murder in 1994
- Murder–suicides
- Royal Air Maroc accidents and incidents