2004 Airline safety and security review

This review includes important safety or security related occurrences from 2004. There are two types of events in this review, numbered events and significant events. Numbered events must meet the following criteria:

There is at least one passenger fatality,
The flight was open to the general public, and
The aircraft was a large jet or turboprop driven model that is typically used in airline service.

Significant events are those that don't meet the criteria for a numbered event, but would likely be of interest to airline passengers and the aviation safety and security community. These events may include non-fatal airline accidents, events unrelated to an airline flight, hijackings, military actions, criminal activities, or acts of sabotage.

Definitions used by AirSafe.com

3 January 2004; Flash Airlines 737-300; near Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt: The aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff on a domestic flight to Cairo and crashed into the Red Sea about nine miles (15 km) south of the city. All 135 passengers and 13 crew members were killed. Flash Airlines is a charter operator based in Egypt.
Boeing 737 plane crashes
Plane crashes for airlines of the Middle East and Africa

21 January 2004; Jet Ex, Incorporated Dassault Aviation DA-20 Falcon Jet; N200JE; Pueblo, CO: Tony La Russa, who at the time had been the coach of the St. Louis Cardinals since 1996, was a passenger in a private jet that was involved in a landing accident. The nonschedueld domestic flight had departed from St. Louis, and there were patches of snow and ice on the runway at the arrival airport in Pueblo, CO. After the thrust reversers were deployed, the crew was unable to keep the aircraft on the runway. There were no injuries among the two crew members and three passengers.
More on this event
Celebrity plane crashes
13 January 2004; Uzbekistan Airways Yak-42, Tashkent, Uzbekistan: The aircraft was on a domestic flight from Termez to Tashkent and crashed during final approach. There was heavy fog in the area of the airport at the time of the crash. All five crew members and 32 passengers were killed, including the senior United Nations representative in Uzbekistan.
Fatal Events for Airlines of the former Soviet Union
10 February 2004; Kish Airlines Fokker F50; near Sharjah, United Arab Emirates: The aircraft crashed shortly before landing on a flight from the island of Kish, Iran to Sharjah. Reportedly, the aircraft dived to the ground shortly after the crew requested an emergency landing. The aircraft crashed and caught fire about two miles (three km) from the airport. Of the six crew members and 40 passengers on board, 43 were killed.
Plane crashes for airlines of the Middle East and Africa

26 February 2004; Beech King Air 200; near Huskovici, Bosnia-Hercegovina: The Macedonian government aircraft was carrying President Boris Trajkovski to the Bosnian city of Mostar when the aircraft lost contact with air-traffic controllers near the border of Bosnia and Montenegro. The aircraft crashed into a hill near the village of Huskovici and caught fire. There was fog and rain in the area at the time of the crash. This village is 12 miles (20 km) south of the city of Mostar. All seven passengers and both crew members were killed. This was not a regular airline flight and will not count toward AirSafe.com fatal event rates.
14 May 2004; Rico Linhas Aéreas Embraer Brasilia; near Manaus, Brazil: The airplane, on a domestic flight from São Paulo de Olivença to Manaus via Tefé, crashed in the tropical jungle near the Rio Negro river while approaching Manaus. All three crew members and 30 passengers were killed.
24 August 2004; Volga-Aviaexpress Tupolev 134A; near Buchalki, Russia: The aircraft departed Moscow Domodedovo Airport (DME) about 2230 on a scheduled flight to Volgograd in southern Russia. This aircraft took off about 10 minutes before a Sibir Airlines Tupolev 154B which also crashed the same evening after departing the same airport. The aircraft broke up in flight and crashed, about thirty minutes after takeoff and within minutes of the in flight breakup of the Sibir Airlines aircraft. At least one witness reported hearing several explosions at about the time of the breakup.

Wreckage from this aircraft was found in the Tula region, near the village of Buchalki, about 125 miles (200 km) from Moscow. Investigators have found traces of explosive residue on both aircraft, and are investigating the possibility that these events were due to sabotage. The two aircraft were separated by about 500 miles (800 km) at the time of their respective crashes. All seven crew members and 34 passengers were killed.
Plane crashes for airlines of the former Soviet Union
24 August 2004; Sibir Airlines Tupolev 154B; near Rostov-on-Don, Russia: The aircraft departed Moscow Domodedovo Airport (DME) about 2240 on a scheduled flight to Sochi near the Black Sea. This aircraft took off about 10 minutes after a Volga-Aviaexpress Tupolev 134A which also crashed the same evening after departing the same airport.

The aircraft broke up in flight and crashed, about 20 minutes after takeoff and within minutes of the in flight breakup of the Volga-Aviaexpress aircraft. According to Sibir Airlines, shortly before the crash, an emergency signal was sent from the aircraft. Wreckage from this aircraft was found near Rostov-on-Don, about 600 miles (960 km) from Moscow. Investigators have found traces of explosive residue on both aircraft, and are investigating the possibility that these events were due to sabotage. All eight crew members and 38 passengers were killed.
Plane crashes for airlines of the former Soviet Union

Note: The last time that two aircraft departing from the same airport on the same day were both involved in a fatal event was 11 September 2001 when an American Airlines 767 and United Airlines 767 were hijacked and flown into the World Trade Center towers.
19 October 2004; AmericanConnection (Corporate Airlines) BAe Jetstream 32; near Kirksville, MO: The aircraft was on a scheduled flight from St. Louis to Kirksville when it crashed about four miles (6.4 km) south of the destination airport. According to the National Weather Service, visibility was about four miles at the time of the crash, with low clouds created a 300-foot ceiling. Both crew members and 11 of the 13 passengers were killed.
American Airlines crashes
18 November 2004; Rutas Aereas Venezolanas (RAVSA) BAe Jetstream 31; Caracas, Venezuela: The aircraft was on a scheduled domestic flight from El Vigia to Caracas and crashed after landing during heavy rain at the Caracas airport. After landing, the aircraft departed the runway and crashed into the airport fire department headquarters and caught fire. That fire was quickly put out by the fire fighters in the building. Both crew members survived, but four of the 19 passengers were killed.
21 November 2004; China Yunnan Airlines (China Eastern) CRJ-200; Baotou, China: The aircraft crashed shortly after taking off on a scheduled domestic flight from Baotou to Shanghai. According to witnesses, the aircraft caught fire and suffered in in-flight breakup before crashing into a frozen lake about two kilometers (1.3 miles) from the runway. The six crew members and 47 passengers were all killed in the crash. Two people on the ground were also killed.
Plane crashes for airlines of the PRC
Plane crashes for airlines of Asia
CRJ plane crashes

28 November 2004; Canadair Challenger; Montrose, CO : The aircraft was on an unscheduled domestic flight from Montrose, CO to South Bend, IN. The aircraft crashed during takeoff, reportedly skidded sideways off the runway, going through a fence before hitting a roadway and catching fire. The force of the crash separated the cockpit from the rest of the fuselage. There was light snow and mist reported at the time of the accident. Two of the three crew members and one of the three passengers passengers were killed

Dick Ebersol, president of NBC Sports and the husband of actress Susan Saint James, was seriously injured in the crash. Among the fatalities was the couple's 14-year old son. Reportedly at the time of the crash, misty rain and sleet were falling after a snowstorm and the runway had about a quarter inch of ice and slush. Prior to the fatal flight, the pilot had reportedly declined to have the plane deiced. On the previous leg of the flight, the aircraft had transported Ebersol, Saint James, and two of their children from California to Montrose, CO. Saint James had left the aircraft at Montrose.
More on this event
Celebrity plane crashes
30 November 2004; Lion Air MD82; Solo City, Indonesia: This was a scheduled domestic flight from Jakarta to Solo City, Indonesia. The aircraft skidded off the runway on landing after a flight from Jakarta. The aircraft broke up and came to rest about 100 meters from the runway. The runway was wet and the aircraft was experiencing tailwind during the landing. One of the seven crew members and 24 of the 156 passengers were killed.
Plane crashes for airlines of Asia

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2004 Airline safety and security review
http://airsafe.com/events/fatal04.htm -- Revised: 18 October 2015