Accident Details
During the takeoff roll, at a speed of 230 km/h, engine No. 4 failed. The captain decided to abandon the takeoff procedure and initiated an emergency braking maneuver. The aircraft was unable to stop within the remaining runway distance and overran at a speed of 100 km/h. It went through a road and a ditch before coming to rest, broken in two.
Injuries and Fatalities
Twenty passengers were injured in the accident. Three of them sustained serious injuries because they were not wearing their seat belts. Several hours after the accident, one of those seriously injured passengers died.
Probable Cause
The official investigation determined that engine No. 4 failed after colliding with birds during the takeoff roll, causing the high pressure turbine to fail. Several errors on the part of the flying crew contributed to the accident, including a wrong decision by the captain, his lack of knowledge about the time needed between engine full power mode and activation of the reverse mode, and the flight engineer's failure to activate the thrust reverse system on engine No. 3, resulting in reverse thrust being activated only on the two left engines.