What happened
On the afternoon of the incident, a twin-engine aircraft departed from runway 09 at Santiago de Querétaro Airport at 14:21 local time. The flight was being conducted as a test flight following recent maintenance work and was operated by a crew consisting of two pilots and three engineers.
After takeoff, the flight crew received clearance to climb to an altitude of FL125. However, as the aircraft reached approximately 12,000 feet, it began an uncontrolled descent. The plane subsequently struck a motorway situated roughly 11 km southwest of the airport. The impact and subsequent fire caused the total destruction of the airframe. There were five fatalities among the occupants, with no survivors reported.
Findings
Investigations into the accident revealed that there were no mechanical failures or component malfunctions capable of disrupting the normal operation of the aircraft. Instead, several organizational deficiencies were identified as contributing factors:
- Ineffective communication and a lack of coordination between the flight crew and ground personnel
- Insufficient oversight of operations by the aircraft operator
- An overall lack of an established safety culture within the operating company