Accident
On 6 September 2011, Aerocon Flight 238, a Fairchild SA227-BC Metro III regional passenger aircraft, departed El Trompillo Airport in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, for a scheduled one-hour flight to Trinidad, approximately 380 kilometers (240 mi; 210 nmi) away. At around 19:00 local time (23:00 UTC), the aircraft was reported to be 19 kilometers (12 mi; 10 nmi) north of its destination when contact was lost. The Bolivian Air Force initiated a search. On 8 September at about 12:30 local time, the wreckage was spotted 29 kilometers (18 mi; 16 nmi) northeast of Trinidad Airport. Initial reports indicated no survivors.
Helicopters reached the crash site at 16:40 local time, and it was discovered that eight of the nine people on board had been killed. The survivor was found at around 09:00 local time on 9 September, having walked away from the wreckage in search of help. He sustained a head wound and severe bruising but no broken bones, and was airlifted to a hospital. A minute of silence was observed in the Senate of Bolivia in memory of the deceased.
Aircraft
The aircraft was a Fairchild SA227-BC Metro III, registration CP-2548, serial number BC-768B. It first flew in 1992 and had served with several airlines before being sold to Aerocon in January 2009.
Investigation
Bolivia's Directorate General of Civil Aviation launched an investigation. The cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder were recovered and sent to Brazil for analysis. It was reported that a required VOR radio beacon had been out of service since 20 August, and the crew was conducting a non-precision approach at the time of the accident.