What happened
On the afternoon of the accident, an aircraft departed from Rincón de Los Sauces Airport, traveling toward Cutral Có. The flight was transporting 31 employees of the Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales Company. During the descent phase, the crew contacted air traffic control to provide an estimated time of arrival for 16:33LT and requested a final weather update for their destination.
Shortly after this communication, while maintaining an altitude of approximately 4,000 feet, the right wing of the aircraft separated from the fuselage. This structural failure caused the plane to enter an uncontrollable dive. The aircraft crashed roughly 35 km north of Cutral Có. The impact resulted in the total destruction of the airframe and 34 fatalities, with no survivors among the occupants.
Findings
Investigations determined that the accident was caused by a structural failure of the right wing occurring during normal flight operations. Specifically, the separation occurred in the region between stringers 3 and 12, as well as near the engine outer rib.
Technical analysis identified fatigue cracks originating from stress concentrations around the rivet holes within a reinforcing plate. While the quality of the metal was found to be acceptable, the specific geometry of the design caused stress levels to exceed original estimates. Furthermore, the manufacturer's inspection protocols were deemed insufficiently precise, which prevented the operator from identifying and repairing the developing cracks before they reached a critical state.