Incident Overview
On December 7, 1983, a serious aviation accident occurred at Madrid-Barajas Airport involving two commercial aircraft. The collision took place on runway 01/19 at approximately 09:39:29 local time. The weather conditions at the airport were characterized by daylight visibility combined with intense fog.
Aircraft Involved
The first aircraft was a Boeing 727-256 with registration EC-CFJ, operated by Iberia. It was conducting scheduled flight IB350 bound for Rome. At the time of the incident, this aircraft had been cleared for takeoff on runway 01 and had reached V1 speed. The second aircraft was a DC-9-32 with registration EC-CGS, operated by Aviaco. It was operating scheduled flight AO134 to Santander. This aircraft had received clearance to proceed to the holding point at runway 01 via the outer taxiway.
Collision Dynamics and Damage
The two aircraft collided on the active runway. The impact resulted in an immediate fire due to fuel spillage from the left wing of the Boeing 727. The DC-9 was totally destroyed by the impact and subsequent fire. All occupants of the DC-9, consisting of five crew members and thirty-seven passengers, perished. The Boeing 727 sustained severe damage, losing almost its entire left wing and the main landing gear on that side. After the collision, the aircraft slid approximately 460 meters along the runway before coming to a stop. It remained facing the opposite direction of its takeoff roll, positioned on the left edge of runway 01.
Casualties
The accident resulted in significant loss of life. A total of fifty passengers and one assistance crew member died as a result of the impact and fire. Among the Boeing 727 occupants, thirty-four passengers and eight crew members survived out of a total complement of eighty-four passengers and nine crew members.