What happened
The incident occurred during the descent to Tripoli-Castel Benito Airport under adverse meteorological conditions, characterized by heavy rainfall and visibility reduced to approximately two miles. As the aircraft executed its final approach at an altitude of 700 feet, both engines on the right side ceased operation simultaneously. The pilot subsequently lost control of the airframe, which entered a stall and impacted the ground in a wooded area located several miles before the runway threshold.
The crash resulted in significant casualties among the people on board. One crew member was killed, while fifteen other occupants sustained injuries. The remaining thirty-seven individuals were reported to be uninjured.
Findings
Investigations determined that the primary cause of the accident was the failure of the captain to maintain a safe altitude by utilizing the available power from the left-side engines after the right-side engine failure. The specific reason for this operational error could not be established. The simultaneous stoppage of both right engines was attributed to fuel starvation, which stemmed from an insufficient quantity of fuel in the right wing tank.
This fuel imbalance developed progressively during the final stage of the flight due to unbalanced tank levels. Although the flight engineer attempted to cross-feed fuel from the left tanks to the right engines under emergency conditions, this procedure failed because it was not completed in time to prevent the engine shutdown.