Incident Overview

Date: Sunday 19 October 1986
Aircraft Type: Tupolev Tu-134A-3
Owner/operator: Rep£blica de Mo‡ambique
Registration Number: C9-CAA
Location: near Komatipoort – ÿ South Africa
Phase of Flight: Approach
Status: Destroyed, written off
Casualties: Fatalities: 34 / Occupants: 44
Component Affected: Aircraft ? Tupolev Tu-134Aircraft ? Tupolev Tu-134
Investigating Agency: CAA S.A.CAA S.A.
Category: Accident
A Mozambique Air Force Tupolev Tu-134 crashed in Maputo, Mozambique, resulting in the deaths of 34 people, including President Samora Machel. The aircraft, departing from Mbala (MMQ), encountered a navigational error ? a MATSAPA VOR frequency selection ? which caused a premature turn. The pilot disregarded navigational aids, resulting in a descent below the 3000-foot limit, and collision with a ground surface. The aircraft broke up, slid across the border, and subsequently caught fire.A Mozambique Air Force Tupolev Tu-134 crashed in Maputo, Mozambique, resulting in the deaths of 34 people, including President Samora Machel. The aircraft, departing from Mbala (MMQ), encountered a navigational error ? a MATSAPA VOR frequency selection ? which caused a premature turn. The pilot disregarded navigational aids, resulting in a descent below the 3000-foot limit, and collision with a ground surface. The aircraft broke up, slid across the border, and subsequently caught fire.

Description

A Mozambique Air Force Tupolev Tu-134, carrying President Samora Machel, impacted a hill while on approach to Maputo Airport, killing 34 occupants; 10 survived the accident. The Tupolev Tu-134 departed Mbala (MMQ), Zambia, for a flight back to Maputo (MPM). The flight carried Mozambique president Samora Machel who had attended a meeting of African leaders in Zambia. While approaching Maputo, an inadvertent selection of the MATSAPA VOR frequency caused the crew to execute a premature 37-degrees turn. Although the pilot queried the turn, no effort was made to verify it by using the available navigational aids. The aircraft descended below the 3000 feet limit in spite of not having visual contact with Maputo. The crew erroneously assumed a power failure at Maputo. A 32-second GPWS warning was ignored and the aircraft collided with the ground at 2187 feet, bounced and crashed into an uphill slope. The aircraft broke up, slid across the South African/Eswatini border and caught fire. Machel, along with 33 other occupants did not survive the accident. CAUSE: “The cause of the accident was that the flight crew failed to follow procedural requirements for an instrument let-down approach , but continued to descend under visual flight rules in darkness and some cloud, i.e. without having visual contact with the ground, below minimum safe altitude, and in addition the ignored GPWS alarm.”

Primary Cause

Failure to follow procedural requirements for an instrument let-down approach, including insufficient visual contact with the ground, continued descent under visual flight rules in darkness, and ignoring a GPWS alarm.Failure to follow procedural requirements for an instrument let-down approach, including insufficient visual contact with the ground, continued descent under visual flight rules in darkness, and ignoring a GPWS alarm.

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