What happened
On a scheduled flight operated by SANSA - Servicios Aéreos Nacionales, a single-engine aircraft departed San Juan Airport at 11:38 local time, bound for Tamarindo with a planned stop in La Fortuna. Following the arrival and departure from La Fortuna Airport at 12:05 local time after dropping off a passenger, the aircraft began its next leg of the journey.
Approximately five minutes into this flight segment, while flying at an altitude of 5,380 feet, the plane entered Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC). During this period of low visibility, the aircraft collided with the side of the Arenal Volcano. The wreckage was located roughly 200 meters below the volcano's summit. The accident resulted in 10 fatalities, with no survivors among the crew or passengers.
Findings
Official investigations concluded that the crash was a result of controlled flight into terrain. The investigation highlighted several critical failures by the crew, most notably that they continued to operate under Visual Flight Rules (VFR) despite being in IMC conditions.
Additional contributing factors included:
- A failure by the pilot to maintain necessary vertical and horizontal separation from the mountainous landscape.
- A significant loss of situational awareness among the crew members.
- Ineffective monitoring of flight parameters by the non-flying pilot.
- Failure to adhere to the established standard operating procedures of SANSA.
- The use of unauthorized or unapproved flight procedures.
- General deficiencies in operational safety culture and a lack of timely corrective actions during the flight.