Investigation Summary
The flight was the first leg of a scheduled service from Alghero to Rome via Cagliari. During the descent into Cagliari, the crew encountered a formation of cumulonimbus clouds. To avoid the weather and lose altitude, the first officer requested and received permission to perform a 360 degree turn. However, the crew failed to complete the full turn, leaving the aircraft on a heading that deviated from their intended path. Confusion intensified in the cockpit regarding their exact position. The captain was under the impression that the aircraft was south of its actual position, flying over the Mediterranean Sea, whereas the first officer correctly suspected they were over the mountains of southern Sardinia. Despite this internal disagreement and the lack of ILS guidance, which was confirmed to be inoperative, the descent continued. The aircraft struck the Conca d'Oru mountainside at approximately 2,000 feet while the crew was lowering the landing gear for the final approach.
Final Conclusions
The accident was classified as Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT). The primary cause was the crew's loss of situational awareness following a weather avoidance maneuver. Contributing factors included the misinterpretation of their position relative to the terrain, the failure to complete the planned 360 degree turn, and the decision to continue the descent to 2,000 feet without positive confirmation of their location while operating in an area of high terrain with inoperative ILS equipment.
Video Analysis
No video analysis linked for this case file yet.
Airframe & Maintenance
Systems & Failure Modes
Instrument Landing System (ILS)
A precision radio navigation system that provides short-range guidance to aircraft to allow them to approach a runway at night or in bad weather. It was inoperative during this flight, forcing a non-precision approach.
Weather Radar
Used by the crew to identify and avoid the cumulonimbus cloud formations that led to the decision to perform the fateful 360 degree turn.
Interesting Facts
- 01The aircraft was a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 delivered new to ATI in 1975.
- 02The crash site was located 18 kilometers southwest of Cagliari-Elmas Airport.
- 03All 31 people on board, including 27 passengers and 4 crew members, perished.
- 04The ILS system at Cagliari-Elmas Airport was known to be inoperative at the time of the accident.
- 05The captain and first officer had conflicting beliefs about the aircraft's position in the final minutes of flight.