Avianca Flight 011: When Spain witnessed one of its most devastating accidents | Knowledge News

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The crash of Avianca Flight 011 is the second-deadliest aviation accident in Spanish territory after the Tenerife airport disaster.

New Delhi: History with riddled with several deadly and devastating plane accidents. But seldom could a tragedy beat the accident of Avianca Flight 011. Notably, it is the second-deadliest aviation accident in Spanish territory after the Tenerife airport disaster, mainland Spain’s deadliest accident and Avianca’s deadliest accident. It took place on November 27, 1983, and today, we take a look back at one of the deadliest aviation accidents in history.

Avianca Flight 011: The Flight, Crew, and Aircraft Details

Avianca Flight 011 was a Boeing 747-200BM Combi and an international passenger flight from Frankfurt to Bogotá via Paris, Madrid, and Caracas. The aircraft flew first in 1977 and in the same year, the Scandinavian Airlines System received it. Its registration was LN-RNA and was given the name Magnus Viking. In 1982, Avianca got its lease. The employees of the airlines nicknamed the aircraft Olafo. At the time of the accident, the aircraft was 6.3 years old.

The captain, Tulio Hernández was 58 years old and was one of the most experienced pilots of Avianca. He was with the airline for over 30 years. Eduardo Ramírez was the first officer and he was 36 years old at that time. He had been with Avianca for a decade. Juan Laverde was the flight engineer and he was 57 years old at that time. He had been with Avianca for more than 20 years.

Avianca Flight 011 and the devastating accident

The crash of the flight took place on November 27, 1983. On the late night of November 26, the flight took off from Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris and was headed for Madrid Barajas Airport. However, there was a delay in the take-off as the flight was waiting for additional passengers from a Lufthansa flight as Avianca cancelled the Paris-Frankfurt-Paris segment.

The accident occurred in Mejorada del Campo which is around 12 kilometres from Madrid airport’s southeast and the time was around 00:06 on November 27. It hit three hills and it finally crashed after hitting the third hill. The plane was destroyed completely and the debris was widely scattered. The accident killed 181 people including 158 passengers. In a miracle, 11 passengers survived but were seriously injured. The accident took place due to the error of the pilot as the captain determined the plane’s position incorrectly.


Swapnajit Kundu

Swapnajit Kundu has almost four years of experience in digital journalism. He can edit copies, handle live blogs, and write hard news along with feature articles. He has previously worked in the digital desk of Deccan Herald.

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