What happened
ALM flight 980 was traveling from New York-JFK International Airport to Juliana Airport in St. Maarten. The flight was operated under a lease agreement, utilizing an ONA aircraft and crew alongside ALM cabin staff. Upon contacting Juliana Tower, the crew received clearance for an ADF approach to runway 09. At the time, weather conditions included scattered clouds at 800 feet and visibility between 2 and 3 miles.
The flight crew failed to sight the runway in time during the initial approach and subsequently attempted two visual circling approaches via left turns. The first attempt was aborted due to poor alignment with the runway. During the second attempt, the pilot could not maintain a proper descent profile without increasing the sink rate beyond safe limits, leading to a missed approach. Following this, the aircraft returned to the St. Maarten Radio Beacon at low altitude and received clearance to fly toward St. Thomas at 4,000 feet.
During the climb, the crew noted erratic behavior from the fuel gauges, though they briefly stabilized at 850 pounds of remaining fuel. Due to uncertainty regarding the accuracy of these readings, the pilot requested a higher altitude and redirected the flight toward St. Croix. To establish visual contact with the sea, the captain chose to descend. The pilot informed the purser of the low fuel situation and instructed the cabin to prepare for ditching. The purser notified the passengers of the impending impact, but no further warnings were issued.
The aircraft ditched in water deeper than 5,000 feet and was not recovered. A PanAm flight assisted in confirming the ditching site via radar, while various helicopters from the US Coast Guard, Navy, and Marine Corps performed rescue operations. Weather during the rescue efforts included rain and visibility as low as three-eighths of a mile.
Findings
- The primary cause was fuel exhaustion caused by repeated unsuccessful landing attempts at St. Maarten which left insufficient fuel to reach an alternate airfield.
- Reduced visibility from unreported rain showers in the approach area contributed to the accident.
- A lack of effective crew coordination during the descent and ditching phase likely decreased the probability of survival.