Investigation Summary
The flight departed Monterrey at 03:19 local time. Radar data indicated that the aircraft reached 28,700 feet before experiencing erratic altitude fluctuations, including a 500-foot drop followed by a brief recovery. Suddenly, the jet entered a high-speed descent, impacting the ground at an 89-degree angle. The impact was so violent that the aircraft completely disintegrated, and the debris field was scattered over a 300-meter radius. Investigators scrutinized the horizontal stabilizer due to previous pilot reports of vibrations in the control column on this specific airframe, but physical evidence was insufficient to confirm a mechanical failure.
Final Conclusions
The Mexican Directorate General of Civil Aeronautics (DGAC) concluded that the cause was a loss of control for undetermined reasons. Contributing factors included significant crew licensing irregularities: the 78-year-old captain was over the age limit for commercial operations, and the 21-year-old co-pilot lacked a type rating for the Learjet 25. While a horizontal stabilizer failure was hypothesized, the NTSB found no factual evidence in the recovered actuator to support this theory.
Video Analysis
No video analysis linked for this case file yet.
Systems & Failure Modes
Horizontal Stabilizer
Suspected of failure due to previous reports of control column vibrations, though NTSB analysis of the actuator found no pre-existing damage.
Flight Data Recorder (FDR)
Recovered but found to be destroyed by the high-speed impact, yielding no usable data.
Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR)
Never located despite extensive search efforts at the crash site.
Interesting Facts
- 01The aircraft impacted the ground at an angle of 89 degrees.
- 02The impact speed was higher than the aircraft's maximum operating speed (Vmo).
- 03The flight data recorder was destroyed and the cockpit voice recorder was never recovered.
- 04The captain was 78 years old, exceeding the age limit for commercial flight operations.
- 05The co-pilot was 21 years old and did not have a type rating for the Learjet 25.
- 06The aircraft was built in 1969 and had a previous fuel imbalance incident in 2005.
Known Controversies & Unanswered Questions
Horizontal Stabilizer Failure Hypothesis
Reference ↗The Mexican DGAC report speculated that a failure in the horizontal stabilizer caused the dive, citing past pilot reports of vibrations. However, the NTSB formally disputed this, stating there was no factual data or physical evidence from the actuator to support the claim.