Investigation Summary
The approach to La Paz's El Alto International Airport was notoriously difficult due to its elevation of 13,325 feet and the lack of radar coverage, requiring crews to navigate precisely using ground-based beacons and their own instruments. On the night of the accident, Flight 980 was cleared to descend from 25,000 to 18,000 feet. The last communication occurred at 19:37 local time, with the crew estimating a landing ten minutes later. For reasons that remain unconfirmed, the aircraft deviated significantly from its assigned path, which should have kept it clear of the highest peaks, and instead flew toward Mount Illimani. The impact occurred at the 19,600-foot level, just below the summit. Initial search efforts were hampered by extreme altitude, severe weather, and deep snow. Over the following decades, the movement of the glacier gradually transported wreckage down the mountain, allowing various expeditions to recover debris and personal effects, though the flight recorders remained elusive.
Final Conclusions
The investigation concluded that the accident was a controlled flight into terrain (CFIT). The aircraft was flying on a path that deviated significantly from the assigned airway, leading it directly into the high terrain of Mount Illimani. While the exact reason for the deviation could not be determined due to the lack of flight recorder data, investigators hypothesized the crew may have been maneuvering to avoid convective weather or were misled by navigation errors. In 2016, a private expedition recovered metal fragments and magnetic tape initially thought to be from the recorders; however, NTSB analysis in February 2017 determined the metal was a recorder rack and pressurized container assembly without data, and the tape was a Spanish-dubbed recording of a 1960s television program.
Photographic Evidence (1)
Video Analysis
The Hunt for the Black Boxes of Eastern Airlines 980 — In 2016, two adventurers set out to Mount Illimani to locate the missing flight recorders of Flight 980, uncovering wreckage that had been hidden by glaciers for over 30 years.
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Airframe & Maintenance
Systems & Failure Modes
Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR)
A device designed to record the audio environment of the flight deck. The housing for the CVR was recovered in 2016, but the internal data storage medium was missing.
Flight Data Recorder (FDR)
A device that records flight parameters. Metal pieces consistent with the FDR pressurized container assembly were found in 2016, but no data was recovered.
Interesting Facts
- 01The accident is the highest-altitude controlled flight into terrain in commercial aviation history.
- 02The aircraft struck the mountain at approximately 19,600 feet (6,000 meters).
- 03The crash site was located 25 miles (22 nautical miles) from runway 9R at El Alto Airport.
- 04Among the passengers were the wife of the U.S. Ambassador to Paraguay and the director of the Peace Corps in Paraguay.
- 05The magnetic tape recovered in 2016 was 1/2-inch wide, whereas aviation recorders of that era used 1/4-inch tape, providing an early indication it was not flight data.
- 06The recovered tape contained an 18-minute recording of the 1960s TV series 'I Spy' dubbed in Spanish.
- 07The aircraft (MSN 22556/1793) was manufactured in 1982.
Known Controversies & Unanswered Questions
Absence of Human Remains
Reference ↗Early expeditions reported finding no bodies or blood at the crash site, leading to various conspiracy theories. However, investigators noted the wreckage was buried under 20 to 30 feet of snow and ice, and remains were eventually found as the glacier melted decades later.