Investigation Summary
The flight was a long haul charter returning from Bangkok with scheduled stops in Colombo, Bombay, and Cairo. Upon reaching the Middle East, the crew encountered bad weather in Cairo and elected to divert to Nicosia, Cyprus. Despite Beirut being the designated alternate with better weather, the captain chose Nicosia, which was experiencing a violent thunderstorm and hail. During the first approach to Runway 32, the aircraft was too high, leading the captain to initiate a go around. He informed the tower he would perform a 'low circuit' to maintain visual contact with the ground. During this maneuver, the aircraft flew into a hillock at an elevation of 842 feet MSL, just 22 feet below the summit. While some contemporary reports and witnesses suggested the aircraft might have been struck by lightning, the official investigation focused on the low-altitude maneuver and crew fatigue as the primary causes. The port wing disintegrated upon impact, and the aircraft rolled and crashed into a second hillock before bursting into flames. Only four people survived the impact and subsequent fire.
Final Conclusions
The official investigation concluded the probable cause was an attempt to make an approach at a height too low to clear rising ground. Contributing factors included severe crew fatigue, as the pilots had exceeded their authorized duty time by nearly three hours (or over four hours by company standards). The first officer's lack of experience, with less than 50 hours on the Britannia, and the captain's decision to divert to Nicosia instead of the weather-superior Beirut were also noted as critical operational failures.
Video Analysis
No video analysis linked for this case file yet.
Systems & Failure Modes
VHF Communication
Initial contact with Nicosia was delayed due to the aircraft's distance and altitude.
Landing Lights
The controller reported seeing the glare of the aircraft's landing lights through low clouds during the first pass.
Interesting Facts
- 01The accident remains the deadliest aviation disaster in the history of Cyprus.
- 02The flight crew had exceeded their legal duty time by approximately 2 hours and 47 minutes at the time of the crash.
- 03The first officer had less than 50 hours of flight experience on the Bristol Britannia aircraft type.
- 04The crash led to the bankruptcy of the airline, Globe Air.
- 05Four people survived the crash: three passengers and one crew member (a flight stewardess).
Safety Actions & Advisories
Flight Time Limitations
The investigation emphasized the dangers of crew fatigue, leading to stricter enforcement of duty time regulations for charter operators.