What happened
A charter flight operating on behalf of the French Government was traveling from Cayenne, French Guyana, to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, with a scheduled stop in Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe. The mission involved the repatriation of Haitian citizens. The aircraft was carrying a total of 20 people, including the flight crew and 18 passengers.
After departing from Guadeloupe, the crew received clearance to descend to 4,000 feet to begin the approach for runway 28 at Port-au-Prince Airport. During the descent, the aircraft impacted a mountain slope within the La Selle Mountain Range, situated approximately 40 km southeast of the destination airport. The wreckage was located at an elevation of 1,533 metres. There were 20 fatalities among the occupants of the twin-engine aircraft.
Findings
Investigation into the accident indicates that the crash occurred during the approach phase of flight under conditions of limited nighttime visibility. The primary factor in the accident was that the crew failed to maintain the proper heading required for the airport approach, leading the aircraft into the terrain.