No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeLatin AmericaCentral AmericaRemembering Tan-Sahsa Flight 414, the deadliest plane crash in Central American history

Remembering Tan-Sahsa Flight 414, the deadliest plane crash in Central American history

On Oct. 21, 1989, Tan-Sahsa Flight 414 crashed while on approach to Toncontín International Airport in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

One-hundred and thirty-one passengers died in the accident, making it the worst aviation disaster in Central American history, according to the Associated Press. Fifteen people survived the crash.

The flight, which had originated at Juan Santamaría International Airport near San José, Costa Rica, made a stopover in Managua, Nicaragua before its fatal final flight.

According to a 1999 report published by the Federal Aviation Administration of the United States, the plane “impacted a mountain known as Cerro de Hula […] approximately 800’ below the summit, 4.8 nautical miles from the Tegucigalpa Runway 01 threshold.”

The report placed responsibility on the pilots for failing to adhere to approach procedures for the airport.

“The aircraft’s descent profile was well below the published step-down course for the entire approach,” the report reads.

The victims included an aide to then-Costa Rican President Óscar Arias. There were 15 U.S. citizens aboard the flight, in addition to dozens of Costa Ricans and Nicaraguans.

Today, a monument near the crash site honors the 131 victims of Tan-Sahsa Flight 414.

 

Trending Now

FBI Recordings Reveal Costa Rica Ex-Minister Celso Gamboa’s Drug Ties

Costa Rican authorities continue to hold former security minister Celso Gamboa in custody as U.S. officials push for his extradition on drug charges. Recent...

Honduras agrees to receive migrants under new US deportation agreement

The US has signed a new deportation agreement with Honduras, allowing officials to send migrants from other countries there instead of keeping them in...

Costa Rica President Confronts Calls to Strip Immunity

Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves denounced today an “attempted judicial coup” as he appeared before a congressional committee that must recommend to the full...

US Cracks Down on Costa Rica’s Narco Network with New Sanctions

The US Treasury Department moved against a Costa Rican drug trafficking ring today sanctioning four individuals and two entities tied to cocaine smuggling and...

President Chaves Downplays Costa Rica’s Security Crisis Amid Record Homicides

President Rodrigo Chaves brushed off concerns about Costa Rica's surging violence during his Wednesday press conference, insisting the security situation "is not as serious"...

Mexico Battles Wildfire Damage with Drone-Based Reforestation

Authorities in the state of Michoacán, in western Mexico, are using drones to scatter seeds from the air in an effort to reforest hundreds...
spot_img
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica