What happened
On a night flight originating from Venezuela, a PA-31 entered Dominican airspace, likely operating as an undocumented transport flight. At 22:26 local time, the Dominican Air Force scrambled an Embraer EMB-314 Super Tucano to intercept the aircraft. However, the radar signal for the PA-31 vanished at 22:28 local time.
Search efforts focused on a sugar cane field situated in the San Rafael de Yuma area, positioned between La Romana and Punta Cana. While the wreckage was located the following morning, the search and rescue operations were halted shortly after midnight because nighttime and adverse weather conditions severely restricted visibility.
No individuals were located at the crash site, and the aircraft is believed to be a total loss. While the registration YV312 was associated with the flight, there are indications that this identifier may be inaccurate.
Findings
- The aircraft disappeared from radar tracking within two minutes of the interception attempt.
- Search operations were hindered by poor visibility due to the time of day and weather.
- No survivors or occupants were recovered from the wreckage.