 Cordoned-off crash site with burned buildings in background guarded by police officers | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 4 November 2008 |
| Summary | Encounter with wake turbulence due to pilot error by fraudulently certified flight crew leading to loss of control. |
| Site | Las Lomas, Mexico City, Mexico 19°25′35″N 99°12′13″W / 19.42639°N 99.20361°W |
| Total fatalities | 16[1] |
| Total injuries | 40 |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Learjet 45 |
| Operator | Secretariat of the Interior |
| Registration | XC-VMC |
| Flight origin | Ponciano Arriaga International Airport, SLP |
| Destination | Mexico City International Airport |
| Occupants | 9 |
| Passengers | 6 |
| Crew | 3 |
| Fatalities | 9 |
| Survivors | 0[2] |
| Ground casualties | |
| Ground fatalities | 7 |
| Ground injuries | 40[3] |
On 4 November 2008 an official Mexican Secretariat of the Interior aircraft crashed in central Mexico City at around 18:45 local time. There were sixteen fatalities—all nine people on board and seven people on the ground.[4] The plane, a Learjet 45, was carrying Mexican Secretary of the Interior Juan Camilo Mouriño.[5]
The plane crashed in rush-hour traffic close to the intersection of Paseo de la Reforma and the Anillo Periférico, in the Las Lomas business district. During its approach to Mexico City International Airport, the plane followed a Boeing 767 too closely and encountered wake turbulence which caused it to invert into a nose-down position. The pilots were able to reduce the angle of descent, but due to excessive speed and insufficient altitude, were unable to regain control of the aircraft. The plane crashed into a building, exploding on impact and killing 16 people.
- ^ "16 Dead in Mexico Plane Crash". Mexico City: Latin American Herald Tribune. Archived from the original on 18 February 2012. Retrieved 15 December 2008.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Xinhuawas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Reporta GDF ocho muertos y 40 heridos de gravedad" (in Spanish). El Universal. 11 April 2008. Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2008.
- ^ Lagunas, Icela; Martinez, Edith (6 November 2008). "Suman ya 14 muertos" [There are already 14 deaths] (in Spanish). Mexico City: El Universal. Archived from the original on 25 November 2008. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
- ^ "Profile: Juan Camilo Mourino". BBC News. 5 November 2008. Archived from the original on 4 November 2013.