Accidents and Incidents
According to Aviation Safety Network, Viasa experienced five accidents/incidents events throughout its history, with two of them being deadly ones, yielding a combined death toll of 216 fatalities, plus a hijacking episode. The two deadly accidents occurred with leased aircraft. Following is a list of the events that carried with the hull-loss of the aircraft involved. The worst accident experienced by the company, and also the worst aviation disaster at the time it took place, occurred in March 1969 (1969-03), and killed all 84 occupants of the aircraft plus 71 people on the ground.
| Date | Location | Aircraft | Tail number | Aircraft damage | Fatalities | Description | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01961-05-3030 May 1961 | Fonte da Telha !Off Fonte da Telha | DC-8-53 | PH-DCL | W/O | 700161000000000000061/61 | The aircraft, leased from KLM, was due to operate the third leg of an international scheduled Rome–Madrid–Lisbon–Santa Maria–Caracas passenger service as Flight 897, when it plunged into the sea shortly after takeoff from Portela Airport, 3 km (1.9 mi) east-northeast of Fonte da Telha. | |
| 01968-06-2929 June 1968 | Amsterdam | DC-8-53 | PH-DCH | W/O | 50000000000000000000 | The aircraft was destroyed by fire while undergoing maintenance at Schiphol Airport owing to an explosion in one of its engines. The aircraft was on lease from KLM. | |
| 01969-03-1616 March 1969 | Maracaibo | DC-9-32 | YV-C-AVD | W/O | 7002155000000000000155 | Leased from AVENSA, the aircraft was due to operate the second leg of an international scheduled Caracas–Maracaibo–Miami passenger service as Flight 742, when it performed a long take-off at Grano de Oro Airport, hit powerlines, and plunged into a nearby crowded neighborhood of the city. All 84 occupants of the aircraft perished in the accident, plus 71 people on the ground. | |
| 01993-11-2626 November 1993 | Buenos Aires | DC-10-30 | YV-135C | W/O | 50000000000000000000/123 | Inbound from Caracas as Flight 940, the aircraft started aquaplaning immediately after touchdown in bad weather at Ezeiza Airport. Overran the runway threshold by 180 m (590 ft). The nosegear collapsed, causing both port and starboard engines to strike the ground. |
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