Investigation Summary
The accident occurred against a backdrop of regional political tensions that directly impacted flight safety. Because Egypt had closed its airspace to Libyan flights, the crew had to fly a significantly longer, indirect route. Reports indicate the crew failed to adequately account for this increased flight time in their fuel planning. When they reached their destination of Benghazi, the airport was blanketed in thick fog. The crew then attempted to divert to Al Bayda, but the combination of poor visibility and depleted fuel reserves proved fatal. The aircraft eventually suffered total fuel exhaustion, forcing the pilot to attempt an emergency landing in the desert terrain near Al Bayda.
Final Conclusions
The primary cause of the accident was fuel exhaustion resulting from inadequate flight planning for an indirect route and the failure to account for weather-related delays at the destination. Contributing factors included the closure of Egyptian airspace, which necessitated the longer route, and heavy fog at both the primary and alternate airports that prevented a timely landing.
Photographic Evidence (1)
Video Analysis
No video analysis linked for this case file yet.
Airframe & Maintenance
Systems & Failure Modes
Fuel System
The aircraft suffered total fuel exhaustion after the crew failed to account for the longer flight path and holding patterns.
Interesting Facts
- 01The aircraft was one of six Tu-154s leased by Libyan Arab Airlines from Balkan Bulgarian Airlines for Hajj pilgrim flights.
- 02Egyptian airspace was closed to Libyan aircraft at the time of the accident.
- 03The crew reportedly did not plan for the longer flight time required by the indirect route.
- 04All 6 crew members survived the crash.
- 05The aircraft was approximately three years old at the time of the accident.