1994 — June 18, Mexican Charter Learjet Crash, Dulles IAP approach, Chantilly, VA– 12
— 12 NTSB. AAR. Controlled Collision with Terrain…(TAESA) Learjet… Chantilly, p. v.
— 12 Washington Post. “Mexican Plane Crashes in U.S.; 12 Are Killed.” 6-19-1994.
Narrative Information
NTSB Executive Summary: “On June 18, 1994, about 0625, a Transportes Aereos Ejecutivos, S.A. (TAESA) Learjet 25D, XA-BBA, crashed 0.8 nautical miles south of the threshold of runway 1R at Dulles International Airport, Chantilly, Virginia, during an instrument landing system approach in instrument meteorological conditions. All 10 passengers and both crewmembers aboard were killed. The airplane was destroyed by impact, and there was no fire.
“The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable causes of the accident were the poor decisionmaking, poor airmanship, and relative inexperience of the captain in initiating and continuing an unstabilized instrument approach that led to a descent below the authorized altitude without visual contact with the runway environment. Contributing to the cause of the accident was the lack of a ground proximity warning system on the airplane.
“Safety issues discussed in the report include weather at Dulles International Airport, flightcrew training, qualifications and performance, flightcrew fatigue, TAESA’s operations specifications, passenger seating, and the ground proximity warning system. Safety recommendations concerning some of these issues were made to the Federal Aviation Administration. Also, as a result of the investigation of this accident, on November 21, 1994, the Safety Board issued safety recommendations to the Federal Aviation Administration concerning the minimum safe altitude warning system and the low level windshear alert system.” (NTSB. AAR. Controlled Collision with Terrain…(TAESA) Learjet… Chantilly, p. v.)
Washington Post: “Chantilly, Va., June 18 — A chartered plane carrying soccer fans to the World Cup match between Mexico and Norway crashed today while trying to land in heavy fog at Dulles International Airport, killing all 12 people aboard, aviation officials said.
“The chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, Carl W. Vogt, said the plane, an Executive Learjet, had missed one approach to the airport and was trying a second when it went down in a heavily wooded area on Dulles property. Dulles is 26 miles west of Washington….
“Those killed were all from Mexico, the Mexican Embassy said. Its list of victims included 6 children and 6 adults. The dead included three teen-agers and three younger children, but their exact relationship with the four adult passengers — two men and two women — was not clear….
“Jose Henonin, a spokesman for a private, commercial chartering company, Taesa, in Mexico City, said the jet had been carrying two crew members and 10 passengers. He said Jose Luis Garza Hernandez, the owner and chairman of the board of Arrendadora Financiera del Norte, a private financial company, had chartered the plane for $1,500 to take members of his family to Washington for the Mexico-Norway game on Sunday….
“Mr. Vogt… said the plane arrived in Chantilly around 6 A.M., was put into a 20-minute holding pattern by Dulles controllers and then tried a landing. “It was a missed approach,” Mr. Vogt said. “It went around and tried a second approach” and crashed…. “We know that there was foggy weather,” he said.” (WP. “Mexican Plane Crashes in U.S.; 12 Are Killed.” 6-19-1994.)
Sources
National Transportation Safety Board. Aircraft Accident Report. Controlled Collision with Terrain, Transportes Aereos Ejecutivos, S.A. (TAESA) Learjet 25D, XA-BBA, Dulles International Airport, Chantilly, Virginia, June 18, 1994 (PB95-910402; NTSB/AAR-95/02). Washington, DC: NTSB, adopted 3-7-1995, 64 pages. Accessed 2-27-2016 at: http://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/AAR9502.pdf
Washington Post. “Mexican Plane Crashes in U.S.; 12 Are Killed.” 6-19-1994. Accessed 2-27-2016 at: http://www.nytimes.com/1994/06/19/us/mexican-plane-crashes-in-us-12-are-killed.html