Birgenair Flight 301
Birgenair Flight 301 was a flight chartered by Turkish-managed Birgenair partner Alas Nacionales from Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic to Frankfurt, Germany, via Gander, Canada, and Berlin, Germany. On 6 February 1996, the Boeing 757-200 operating the route crashed shortly after take-off from Puerto Plata's Gregorio Luperón International Airport. All 189 people on board died. The cause was pilot error after receiving incorrect airspeed information from one of the pitot tubes, which investigators believe was blocked by a wasp nest built inside it. The aircraft had been sitting unused for 20 days, and without pitot tube covers in place for the preceding two days before the crash.
TC-GEN, the aircraft involved in the accident, Photographed in 1995 | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 6 February 1996; 28 years ago |
| Summary | Stalled and crashed into the ocean |
| Site | 26 km (16 mi; 14 nmi) NE of Gregorio Luperón International Airport Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic 19°54′50″N 70°24′20″W |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 757-225 |
| Operator | Birgenair |
| ICAO flight No. | ALW301 |
| Call sign | ALPHA LIMA WHISKY 301 |
| Registration | TC-GEN |
| Flight origin | Gregorio Luperón International Airport Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic |
| 1st stopover | Gander International Airport Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada |
| 2nd stopover | Berlin Schönefeld Airport Berlin, Germany |
| Destination | Frankfurt Airport Frankfurt, Germany |
| Occupants | 189 |
| Passengers | 176 |
| Crew | 13 |
| Fatalities | 189 |
| Survivors | 0 |
Flight 301 is the joint-deadliest aviation incident involving a Boeing 757 (along with American Airlines Flight 77) having a total of 189 fatalities. Furthermore, Flight 301 is the deadliest aviation accident ever to have occurred in the Dominican Republic.