Divi Divi Air Flight 014 Explained

Divi Divi Air Flight 014
Image Upright:1.15
Type:Engine failure, ditching at sea
Site:Off the Coast of Bonaire
Coordinates:12.2419°N -68.5471°W
Origin:Hato International Airport, Willemstad, Netherlands Antilles, Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles
Destination:Flamingo International Airport, Kralendijk, Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles
Date:22 October 2009
Fatalities:1
Aircraft Type:Britten-Norman BN-2A Islander
Operator:Divi Divi Air
Tail Number:PJ-SUN
Occupants:10
Passengers:9
Crew:1
Survivors:9

Divi Divi Air Flight 014 (some sources refer to it as Flight 016), was a scheduled commuter flight from Hato International Airport in Curaçao to Flamingo International Airport in Bonaire carrying a single pilot and nine passengers, which on 22 October 2009 ditched in the Caribbean Sea off the Coast of Bonaire due to an engine failure.

Aircraft

The aircraft involved was a Britten-Norman BN-2A Islander, registration PJ-SUN. The aircraft made its first flight on 12 December 1973, and was therefore almost 36 years old at the time of the accident.

Accident

The flight originated from Hato International Airport of Curaçao en route to the Flamingo International Airport on the sister island of Bonaire. The aircraft departed from Curaçao at 09:48 with an estimated landing time of 10:13 at Bonaire. Approximately 10 minutes after departure the starboard engine failed in flight. The pilot, Robert Mansell, elected to continue the flight to Bonaire on the remaining engine and at approximately 24nmi west of Bonaire, the pilot contacted Flamingo Tower and informed the controller that he was flying on one engine. Following the engine failure the aircraft started to lose altitude at a rate of about 200 feet per minute until it impacted the water at a position approximately 0.5nmi south of Klein Bonaire and 3nmi west of the main island at time 10:17.

Moments before the ditching Mansell looked into the cabin and gave the thumbs up to the passengers, checking that their life vests were on.

During the ditching, at impact with the water surface, the cockpit door and left main landing gear were detached from the aircraft. All nine passengers survived the ditching and were rescued by a nearby diver's boat. The passengers reported that after the ditching, the pilot was injured and appeared to be unconscious as he did not try to remove himself from the aeroplane. The pilot actually went down with the aircraft despite the efforts of some passengers who tried to remove him from his seat while the aeroplane was sinking.[1] [2]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ranter. Harro. ASN Aircraft accident Britten-Norman BN-2A-26 Islander PJ-SUN Bonaire-Flamingo International Airport (BON). live. 2021-06-25. aviation-safety.net. Aviation Safety Network. https://web.archive.org/web/20091026144913/http://aviation-safety.net:80/database/record.php?id=20091022-0 . 26 October 2009 .
  2. Web site: Hero pilot sacrificed life to save passengers . Henry . Robin . 2009-10-24 . The Sunday Times . 2021-06-13.