| Occurrence Type: | Accident |
| Summary: | Crashed shortly after take-off |
| Site: | Near Cochabamba, Bolivia |
| Aircraft Type: | Douglas DC-4 |
| Operator: | Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano |
| Tail Number: | CP-609 |
| Origin: | Jorge Wilstermann International Airport, Cochabamba, Bolivia |
| Destination: | El Alto Airport, La Paz, Bolivia |
| Occupants: | 59 |
| Passengers: | 55 |
| Crew: | 4 |
| Fatalities: | 59 |
| Survivors: | 0 |
On 5 February 1960, a Douglas DC-4 passenger aircraft of Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano on a domestic flight from Cochabamba to La Paz, Bolivia, crashed shortly after take-off. All 59 people on board were killed.[1] [2]
Five minutes after taking off from Cochabamba's Jorge Wilstermann Airport, one of the plane's four engines reportedly caught fire.[3] [4] The aircraft subsequently crashed into a lagoon in the Andes, some 20 miles from the city of Cochabamba.[5] [6] [7] It was the worst aviation accident in Bolivia's history at the time.[8] The pilot was one of the airline's most experienced aviators, especially over the mountains of Bolivia.[9] [10]
Out of the 59 onboard, one child survived the initial crash, but died due to their injuries while being taken to a hospital by rescuers. Among the passengers were four families.[11]
The airline canceled all flights the day of the crash for mourning. The accident was blamed on a technical defect.[12]