Quito – Nueva Loja

On January 17, 2002 at 11:01 AM, Quito – Nueva Loja experienced a crash involving Fairchild-Hiller FH-227, operated by Petroproduccion - Unidad de Aviacion, with the event recorded near Mt El Tigre Nariño.

The flight was categorized as charter/taxi (non scheduled revenue flight) and the reported phase was flight at a mountains crash site.

26 people were known to be on board, 26 fatalities were recorded, 0 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 100.0%.

Crew on board: 5, crew fatalities: 5, passengers on board: 21, passenger fatalities: 21, other fatalities: 0.

The listed crash cause is human factor. The twin engine aircraft departed Quito-Mariscal Sucre Airport at 1038LT on a charter flight to Nueva Loja-Lago Agrio Airport, carrying 21 oil workers and and five crew members on behalf of the Texaco Oil Company. While cruising under VFR mode at an altitude of 15,500 feet, the crew was instructed by ATC to change heading to 094° in order to descent to Nueva Loja for a landing on runway 23. But the crew failed to comply with this instruction and continued straight ahead. Few minutes later, the crew started the descent in foggy conditions when the aircraft struck the slope of Mt El Tigre located in the south part of Colombia, near the border with Ecuador. The wreckage was found three days later at an altitude of 4,500 metres. The aircraft disintegrated on impact and all 26 occupants were killed.

Aircraft reference details include registration HC-AYM, MSN 511, year of manufacture 1966.