What happened
During a nighttime local training session at Nouméa-La Tontouta, a four-engine aircraft was performing a series of touch-and-go maneuvers. Shortly after departing from the airfield, the crew began an ascent. While climbing, the flight crew initiated a turn that led the aircraft into the terrain. The plane impacted the slope of Mt Kokoreta at an altitude of 1,002 meters, approximately 10 km east of the airport.
The impact resulted in the total destruction of the airframe. There were seven fatalities among the crew members, with no survivors reported from the flight.
Findings
Investigations into the accident concluded that the crash was a result of controlled flight into terrain. The primary factor identified was an operational error where the crew initiated a turn in the opposite direction to the established departure procedures.