Incident Overview

Date: Sunday 29 August 1999
Aircraft Type: Learjet 35A
Owner/operator: Corporate Jets
Registration Number: N350JF
Location: 25 km S of Adwa – ÿ Ethiopia
Phase of Flight: En route
Status: Destroyed, written off
Casualties: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Component Affected: Learjet N350JFLearjet N350JF
Investigating Agency: CAA EthiopiaCAA Ethiopia
Category: Unlawful Interference
A Learjet N350JF flight from Naples to Luxor to Lanseria via Nairobi was diverted to Djibouti due to a border-crossing prohibition. The flight plan involved a route through Asmara, Ethiopia, and Djibouti. The aircraft strayed into Ethiopian airspace and was mistakenly identified as an Eritrean fighter aircraft by Ethiopian military forces, leading to a potential attack. The Ethiopian Defense Force fired a missile, resulting in the plane’s destruction.A Learjet N350JF flight from Naples to Luxor to Lanseria via Nairobi was diverted to Djibouti due to a border-crossing prohibition. The flight plan involved a route through Asmara, Ethiopia, and Djibouti. The aircraft strayed into Ethiopian airspace and was mistakenly identified as an Eritrean fighter aircraft by Ethiopian military forces, leading to a potential attack. The Ethiopian Defense Force fired a missile, resulting in the plane’s destruction.

Description

Learjet N350JF was to be ferried from Naples and Luxor to Lanseria via Nairobi. An IFR flight plan was filed from Luxor to Nairobi, via Asmara, then directly over Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia, on Upper Golf 650 airway, but because of the border-crossing prohibition a second flight plan was filed via Djibouti. At 13:30 UTC the crew reported over Asmara at FL450 estimating Assab, at 14:06, then Parim, at 14:14, en route to Djibouti. Somehow, the Learjet strayed off its intended course and moved deep inside Ethiopian no-fly zone from Eritrea’s airspace. Ethiopian military forces thought the plane was Eritrean and decided to shoot down the plane using an anti-aircraft battery. Probable Cause: “While flying in a no-fly zone- a route closed by a NOTAM- N350JF was mistaken for an Eritreaian fighter aircraft with a hostile intention, and hence was hit by a missile fired by the Ethiopian Defense Force and destroyed.”

Primary Cause

Mistaken Identification of an Eritrean Fighter Aircraft by Ethiopian Military Forces.Mistaken Identification of an Eritrean Fighter Aircraft by Ethiopian Military Forces.

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