What happened
On December 15, an aircraft operated by Escadron de Transport 01.062 Vercors departed from Toulouse-Francazal Airport for a three-day mission involving paratrooper training. The flight, carrying four crew members and twelve paratroopers, initially proceeded to the Tour du Crieu drop zone. After nine skydivers had successfully exited the aircraft at 10:17LT while at 12,000 feet, the captain requested permission to perform a low-altitude flight over the Pyrenees mountains for approximately 15 minutes.
At 10:25LT, the aircraft entered the Ariege valley. As the plane approached Suc-et-Sentenac at 10:34LT, it initiated a right turn and began an ascent to clear the Pic du Pioulou. The climb commenced at an altitude of 3,700 feet with a rate of 3,000 feet per minute and a speed of 170 knots. However, the terrain required a much steeper ascent than the aircraft could maintain. As the plane passed the peak, the airspeed dropped to 100 knots, triggering the stick shaker and stall warnings. The aircraft's nose pitched up to an angle of attack of 55 degrees, and at 55 knots, the plane entered a stall and rolled to the left. The aircraft struck the slope of the Pic du Pioulou at an altitude of 1,830 metres. The impact destroyed the airframe and caused seven fatalities, including all four crew members and three remaining paratroopers.
Findings
Investigations into the accident identified several contributing factors related to human error during an unplanned flight phase. The crew, who were not accustomed to mountain flying, underestimated the increasing difficulty of the terrain. The investigation noted a lack of decisive leadership in the cockpit due to a "soft consensus" among the crew members, which prevented effective management of the situation. Ultimately, the crash was caused by an incorrect assessment of the aircraft's performance capabilities relative to the steep mountain topography.