Investigation Summary
The flight departed Caracas-Maiquetía Airport for a short domestic leg to Cumaná. Shortly after takeoff, the crew encountered a critical failure involving the attitude indicators (artificial horizons), which are essential for maintaining the aircraft's orientation relative to the horizon, especially when flying over water or in low-visibility conditions where a natural horizon may not be visible. The pilots communicated the emergency to air traffic control and began a turn to return to the departure airport. However, without reliable attitude information, the pilots likely suffered from spatial disorientation. The aircraft descended and struck the sea at high speed. Because the wreckage came to rest in deep water, investigators were unable to recover major components of the airframe or the specific instruments to determine the exact nature of the mechanical or electrical failure that led to the erroneous readings.
Final Conclusions
The accident was caused by the failure of the aircraft's attitude indicators shortly after takeoff. This instrument malfunction, combined with the resulting spatial disorientation of the flight crew during an emergency return to the airport, led to an uncontrolled descent into the sea.
Video Analysis
No video analysis linked for this case file yet.
Systems & Failure Modes
Attitude Indicator
The primary flight instrument used to inform the pilot of the aircraft's orientation relative to the Earth's horizon.
Interesting Facts
- 01The aircraft was a Hawker Siddeley HS 748 Series 2A, a popular turboprop regional airliner.
- 02The crash occurred only two minutes after the flight departed from Caracas.
- 03All 43 passengers and 3 crew members perished in the accident.
- 04The wreckage was located in deep water, which prevented the recovery of major aircraft sections for detailed analysis.
- 05The primary reported cause was a malfunction of the artificial horizons.
- 06The aircraft's manufacturer serial number (MSN) was 1756.