Varig Flight 797
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PP-VJK, the aircraft involved in the accident, is seen here at Zürich Airport in 1982. | |
| Accident summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | 3 January 1987 |
| Summary | Engine failure |
| Site | Near Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire |
| Passengers | 39 |
| Crew | 12 |
| Fatalities | 50 |
| Survivors | 1 (initially 2, one passenger died four days later) |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 707-320C |
| Operator | Varig |
| Registration | PP-VJK[1] |
| Flight origin | Port Bouet Airport |
| Destination | Rio de Janeiro-Galeão International Airport |
Varig Flight 797 was a flight from Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. On 3 January 1987 the Boeing 707-320C used for the route crashed on the terrain, killing all 12 crew members and 38 of 39 passengers.[2]
When departing Abidjan the aircraft developed problems with its left (No. 1) engine.[2] While returning the aircraft crashed into the jungle 18 km from the airport.[3][4] The crash site was a rubber plantation.[5]
Four days after the disaster, Ahmad Wansa, a British citizen who was injured in the crash, died on board a Swiss aircraft while arriving in Paris; he was going to be transferred to a burn unit in a Paris suburb. The sole remaining survivor, identified as Ivory Coast University Prof. Neuba Yessoh,[6] had burns on less than 20 percent of his body.[3] Yessoh died of heart attack on 4 March 2015 at the age of 72. [7]
Nationalities of the persons on board are as follows:
| Nationality | Passengers | Crew | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
 Brazil | 10 | 12 | 22 |
 Israel | 2 | 0 | 2 |
 Côte d'Ivoire | 13 | 0 | 13 |
 Lebanon | 3 | 0 | 3 |
 France | 2 | 0 | 2 |
 West Germany | 2 | 0 | 2 |
 Senegal | 2 | 0 | 2 |
 United States | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 United Kingdom | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 Peru | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 Chile | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 Cameroon | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 39 | 12 | 51 |
References
- ↑ "Registro Aeronáutico Brasileiro". Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil.
- 1 2 http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19870103-0
- 1 2 "Death of Briton Brings Toll To 50 in Abidjan Plane Crash." Associated Press. 7 January 1987. Retrieved on 31 January 2009.
- ↑ Germano da Silva, Carlos Ari César (2008). "Na escuridão da noite africana". O rastro da bruxa: história da aviação comercial brasileira no século XX através dos seus acidentes 1928–1996 (in Portuguese) (2 ed.). Porto Alegre: EDIPUCRS. pp. 345–351. ISBN 978-85-7430-760-2.
- ↑ "Jetliner Crashes in W. Africa; 49 Killed, 2 Survive." Los Angeles Times. January 4, 1987. Retrieved on August 7, 2014.
- ↑ "Varig 707 in Ivory Coast Crash Said to Have Had Earlier Troubles." Washington Post. 6 January 1987. Retrieved on 13 February 2009.
- ↑ "Deuil: Neuba Yessoh, le seul rescapé du crash d’avion à Alépé en 1987, inhumé." Fratmat.info 13 April 2015
External links
 Photos of PP-VJK at Airliners.net |
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