Fatal and Significant Airliner Events in 2001
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.
25 January 2001; Rutaca Airlines DC3; Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela:
The aircraft crashed and burned in a populated area near the airport shortly after takeoff. The aircraft had refueled in Ciudad Bolivar prior to taking off for Margarita Island in the Caribbean. The 21 passengers and three crew members were all killed. Two children on the ground were injured as well.
BBC Report27 January 2001; Beechcraft King Air; near Denver, CO: Two Oklahoma State basketball players, an OSU basketball executive and five staffers and broadcasters associated with the program were killed when their plane crashed shortly after takeoff from the Jefferson County airport near Denver, CO. The two crew members were also killed. The charted aircraft was bound for Stillwater, Oklahoma when it took off during snowy conditions.
- 15 March 2001; Vnukovo Airlines Tupolev 154; Medina, Saudi Arabia:
The aircraft was hijacked by three men about 30 minutes after departing Istanbul, Turkey on a flight to Moscow, Russia.
After being diverted to Medina, Saudi Arabia, the hijackers entered negotiations with Saudi Arabian authorities and released some of the hostages.
The following day, commandos stormed the aircraft and freed the rest of the hostages.
One of the 12 crew members and one of the 159 passengers were killed by the hijackers. One hijacker was killed and the other two were captured.
Fatal events involving airlines of the former Soviet Union - 24 March 2001; Air Caraïbes Twin Otter 300; Saint-Barthélémy, Guadeloupe:
The Twin Otter plane was on a short inter-island flight between St. Maarten and Saint-Barthélémy when it struck a house on approach to the airport.
Saint-Barthélémy has a difficult approach to the airport and pilots flying into the airport need a special certification.
Both crew members and all 17 passengers were killed. One person on the ground was also killed.
29 March 2001; Airborne Charter Gulfstream III; Aspen CO: The private jet was approaching Aspen's Sardy Field after a flight from Los Angeles, CA when it crashed near the airport. There was light snow and fog in the area at the time of the crash and the aircraft was executing an instrument approach at about 7 p.m local time. All three crew members and 15 passengers were killed. Airborne Charter is owned by Cinergi Pictures Entertainment. Cinergi credits include films such as "Die Hard with a Vengence," "Tombstone," "Evita" and "Nixon."
This event did not involve an airline aircraft.
NTSB Accident Synopsis
NTSB Accident Report - 3 July 2001; Vladivostok Avia Tupolev 154; near Irkutsk, Russia:
The plane crashed about 34 kilometers (21 miles) from Irkutsk in the Siberian region of Russia, while on a domestic flight from Yekaterinburg in western Russia to Vladivostok on the Pacific coast of Russia.
The aircraft was making a third approach to Irkutsk, a scheduled refueling stop, when it crashed.
All nine crew members and 136 passengers were killed.
Fatal events involving airlines of the former Soviet Union
Tupolev 154 Profile (Airliners.net)
Accident Related Stories (Pravda) - 29 August 2001; Binter Méditerraneo CN-235; near Malaga, Spain:
The plane crashed on a road about a quarter mile (400 meters) from the runway shortly after the crew reported having engine trouble.
The aircraft had been on a domestic flight from from the Spanish enclave of of Melilla on the northern coast of Morocco to Malaga when it crashed.
One of the three crew members and three of the 44 passengers were killed.
CN-235 Profile (Airliners.net) - 11 September 2001; American Airlines 767 (Flight 11); World Trade Center, New York:
The aircraft was on a flight from Boston to Los Angeles when it was hijacked and flown into one of the World Trade Center Towers.
Another jet, a United Airlines 767, was hijacked and crashed into the other tower.
Both towers later collapsed.
All 11 crew members, 76 passengers, and five hijackers were killed, as were untold numbers of people on the ground.
Fatal American Airlines Events
Fatal 767 Events
Attack on New York and Washington - 11 September 2001; United Airlines 767 (Flight 175); World Trade Center, New York:
The aircraft was on a flight from Boston to Los Angeles when it was hijacked and flown into one of the World Trade Center Towers.
Another jet, an American Airlines 767, was hijacked and flown into the other tower.
Both towers later collapsed.
All nine crew members, 51 passengers, and five hijackers were killed, as were untold numbers of people on the ground.
Fatal United Airlines Events
Fatal 767 Events
Attack on New York and Washington - 11 September 2001; American Airlines 757 (Flight 77); The Pentagon, Arlington, VA:
The aircraft was on a flight from Dulles to Los Angeles when it was hijacked and flown into the Pentagon, collapsing part of the structure.
All six crewmembers, 53 passengers, and five hijackers were killed.
Fatal American Airlines Events
Fatal 757 Events
Attack on New York and Washington - 11 September 2001; United Airlines 757 (Flight 93); near Pittsburgh, PA:
The aircraft was on a flight from Newark to San Francisco when it was hijacked.
However, the aircraft crashed outside Pittsburgh.
All seven crewmembers, 34 passengers, and four hijackers were killed.
Fatal American Airlines Events
Fatal 757 Events
Attack on New York and Washington12 September 2001; Aero Ferinco Let 410; near Chichen Itza, Mexico: The aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff on the return leg of an excursion to an archeological site. The passengers had taken a side trip from their cruise ship. Both crew members and all 17 passengers were killed.
- 18 September 2001; TAM Fokker 100; near Belo Horizonte, Brazil:
The right engine of the aircraft broke up while in cruise at around 30,000 feet (9,140 meters) while enroute from Recifie to São Paulo.
Pieces of the engine shattered two cabin windows and caused a cabin depressurization.
One of the 82 passengers was killed as a result of the depressurization.
Fatal TAM Events - 4 October 2001; Sibir Airlines Tupolev 154M; Black Sea near Adler, Russia:
The plane crashed about 184 kilometers (114 miles) from southern Russia in the Black Sea, shortly after the aircraft exploded in flight.
The aircraft had departed from Tel Aviv, Israel on a charter flight to Novosibirsk, Russia and was at cruise altitude when the explosion occurred.
The reason for the in-flight explosion, which was witnessed by another airliner flight crew, is not known.
However, various pieces of evidence point to in inadvertent strike by a Ukrainian military missile.
All 12 crew members and 64 passengers were killed.
Fatal events involving airlines of the former Soviet Union
Tupolev 154 Profile (Airliners.net)
Map of Russia (Wold Factbook)
Accident Related Stories (Pravda) - 8 October 2001; SAS MD87; Milan Italy:
The aircraft was taking off from Milan's Linate airport for a flight to Copenhagen when it collided with a Cessna Citation on the fog-shrouded runway.
The airliner then crashed into a nearby hanger and caught fire.
There was no indication that this event was the result of a hijacking, sabotage, or other act of violence.
All six crew members and 104 passengers on the airliner were killed, as were the four occupants of the business jet and four airport workers on the ground.
Fatal events involving SAS
Fatal events involving the MD80 series aircraft - 12 November 2001; American Airlines A300; Queens, New York:
The aircraft was on a flight from New York to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic when it crashed into a residential neighborhood just outside JFK airport.
The aircraft experienced an in-flight breakup, with the vertical fin and one engine landing away from the main impact site.
There were a number of homes damaged or destroyed by the crash, and five people on the ground were also killed.
All nine crew members and 251 passengers on the aircraft were killed, including five infants.
Fatal A300 Events
Fatal American Airlines Events
Accident Investigation Details - 24 November 2001; Crossair Avro RJ100; near Zurich, Switzerland:
The aircraft was on a flight from Berlin, Germany to Zurich, Switzerland when it crashed into a wooded area about two miles (3.2 km) from the runway during a night approach to Zurich's airport.
Three of the five crew members and 21 of the 28 passengers were killed.
Fatal Swissair/Crossair Events
Fatal BAe 146/Avro RJ100 Events
Other Years
1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007
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
http://airsafe.com/events/fatal01.htm -- Revised: 6 September 2007
