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Fatal and Significant Airliner Events in 2000

The following are the most recent fatal airliner mishaps, listed with the most recent event first, from around the world. In each event, at least one passenger was killed. These events include all jet passenger flights and turboprop accidents involving models with more than 10 passengers seats and which are used in airline service in North America and western Europe. These events include passenger fatalities due to hijackings, sabotage, or military action. Some non-airline fatal events are included, but only fatal airline events are numbered.

1. 10 January 2000; Crossair Saab 340; near Zurich, Switzerland: The aircraft had just departed on a flight to Dresden, Germany when it crashed just north of the runway. The three crew members and seven passengers were all killed.
   Other Fatal Swissair and Crossair Events
   Other Saab 340 fatal events
   Background information on Switzerland

2. 30 January 2000; Kenya Airways A310-300; near Abidjan, Ivory Coast: The aircraft crashed into the Atlantic Ocean shortly after taking off at night for a flight from Abidjan to Lagos, Nigeria. There were at least nine survivors among the 169 passengers and 10 crew members.
   More details on the event
   Kenya Airways Fatal Events
   Other A310 fatal events
   Major accidents in the Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire)
   Background information on Kenya

3. 31 January 2000; Alaska Airlines MD83; near Pt. Mugu, CA: The aircraft was on a flight from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to San Francisco when it crashed into the Pacific Ocean about 20 miles (32 km) northwest of the LAX airport. Reportedly, the aircraft was diverting to Los Angeles and started a rapid descent from about 17,000 feet. All 83 passengers and five crew members were killed.
   Links to more details and resources

4. 19 April 2000; Air Philippines 737-200; near Davao, Philippines: The aircraft crashed on Samal Island near the city of Davao during its second approach to Davao's airport. The aircraft had begun its flight in Manila. All 124 passengers and seven crew members were killed in the crash.
   737 fatal passenger events
   Map of the area from CNN
   Background on the Philippines

5. 21 May 2000; Executive Airlines BAe Jetstream 31; near Wilkes-Barre, PA: The aircraft crashed about eight miles (12.8 km) from the airport while maneuvering for its second landing attempt. The second landing was attempted during a period of reduced visibility after a charter flight from Atlantic City, NJ. Both crew members and all 17 passengers were killed.
   Fatal Jetstream events
   NTSB Accident Summary
   NTSB Accident Report

6. 5 June 2000;Ghana Airlink F27-600; Accra, Ghana: The aircraft, which originated its domestic flight in Tamale, crashed at Kotoka Airport in Accra while landing during a heavy rainstorm. The aircraft reportedly touched down nose first and the fuselage broke in two. Six of the 52 occupants were killed. The aircraft was being operated by the Ghana Air Force as a civil airline flight.

7. 22 June 2000; Wuhan Airlines Y-7; near Wuhan, China: The aircraft was inbound to Wuhan after departing from Enshi on a domestic flight and reportedly circled Wuhan for about 30 minutes due to thunderstorms in the area. The aircraft crashed during an emergency landing about 12 miles (19.2 km) from the airport. All four crew members and 40 passengers were killed. Seven people on the ground were also killed.

8. 8 July 2000; Aerocaribe BAe Jetstream 32; Villahermosa, Mexico: The aircraft was on a domestic flight from Tuxla Gutierrez to Villahermosa crashed en route about a half hour after takeoff. It was reported that the pilot had diverted from the intended flight path due to weather conditions. Both crew members and all 17 passengers were killed.
   Fatal Jetstream events

9. 17 July 2000; Alliance Air 737-200; Patna, India: The aircraft was on a domestic flight from Calcutta to Patna and was making a second approach when the aircraft crashed into a residential area about 2 km (1.25 miles) from the airport. All six crew members and 45 of the 52 passengers were killed. Five people on the ground were also killed.
   737 fatal passenger events

10. 25 July 2000; Air France Concorde near Paris, France: The aircraft was on a charter flight from Charles de Gaulle airport near Paris to JFK airport in New York. There was apparently a problem with at least one of the engines, either during takeoff or shortly after takeoff. The aircraft caught fire and crashed into a hotel near the airport. All 100 passengers and nine crew members were killed. Four people on the ground were also killed.
    Related accident details
    Air France fatal passenger events since 1970

11. 27 July 2000; Royal Nepal Airlines Twin Otter; Jarayakchali, Nepal: The aircraft departed Bajhang on a scheduled domestic flight from Bajhang to Dhangadhi. The aircraft was later found to have crashed against a hill. All 22 passengers and three crew members were killed.

    11 August 2000; Southwest Airlines 737; en route from Las Vegas, NV to Salt Lake City, UT: The aircraft was on a scheduled flight from Las Vegas to Salt Lake City when about 20 minutes before landing, a 19 year old passenger became belligerent and attempted to enter the cockpit. While being escorted back to his seat, the 19 year old attacked another passenger. A number of other passengers subdued him until the aircraft landed. After landing, the now unconscious passenger was removed from the aircraft and he died several hours later. The medical examiner found traces of drugs in the dead passenger's system, but listed the cause of death as suffocation. The death was classified as a homicide, but none of the passengers involved in the incident were charged with a crime. No other crew members or passengers were seriously injured or killed. Because this passenger death was due at least in part to the deliberate actions of that passenger, this does not constitute a fatal event as defined by AirSafe.com.

12. 23 August 2000; Gulf Air A320; Near Manama, Bahrain: The aircraft was making a third attempt to land at the Bahrain International Airport after a flight from Cairo when the aircraft crashed into the sea about three miles (4.8 km) from the airport. All eight crew members and 135 passengers were killed.
    Fatal Gulf Air Events
    Other accident details
    Fatal A320 Events

    6 October 2000; Aeromexico DC9; Reynosa, Mexico: The aircraft was landing in Reyosa, Mexico after a flight from Mexico City, overshot the runway, and crashed into some nearby homes. None of the 83 passengers and six crew members were killed, but four people on the ground were killed. There was rain in the area at the time of the accident, and there were no lights at the airport. This event does not count as a fatal event as defined in this site, so the fatal event rates for Aeromexico and the DC9 are unchanged.
    Aeromexico fatal events

    16 October 2000; Cessna 335; near St. Louis, Missouri: The governor of Missouri, Mel Carnahan, along with two others were apparently killed in the crash of a small private plane about 25 miles (40 km) south of St. Louis. The aircraft had departed from the St. Louis area about 7 p.m. local time and was transporting the governor to a campaign stop in New Madrid, Missouri. The accident occurred at about 7:30 p.m., shortly after the pilot had reported a problem with one of the aircraft's instruments. The accident occurred at night and there was rain and fog in the area. This event did not involve an airline aircraft.
    NTSB Accident Summary
    NTSB Accident Report
    CNN report of the accident

13. 31 October 2000; Singapore Airlines 747-400; Taipei, Taiwan:
    The aircraft crashed and burned shortly after taking off from Taipei on a scheduled flight to Los Angeles. The aircraft reportedly attempted to take off on a runway that was undergoing repairs and struck construction equipment on the runway. There was rain and wind in the area from an approaching typhoon at the time of the crash. There were 78 fatalities among the 159 passengers and four fatalities among the 20 crew members on the aircraft.
    Crash Details

Related Pages
Recent Fatal Events Worldwide
Recent U.S. Fatal Events
Fatal Events by Airline
Accidents by U.S. Airline
U.S. Airline Fleets
Fatal Events by Model
Fatal Event Rates by Model
Accidents by Model