Many notable human fatalities have resulted from aviation accidents and incidents.
Those killed as part of a sporting, political or musical group who flew together when the accident took place are usually only listed under the group sections; however, some are also listed as individuals.
Name | Nationality | Year | Notability | Flight/aircraft | Crash site | Cause/circumstances | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aaliyah | United States | 2001 | Actress, singer, and model | Cessna 402 | Marsh Harbour, Abaco Islands, The Bahamas | Maximum takeoff weight of airplane substantially exceeded, pilot under the influence of cocaine and alcohol.[1] | |
United States | 1967 | test pilot | X-15 Flight 3-65-97 | Randsburg, California, United States | Breakup caused by malfunctioning control system | ||
Adolf II, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe | Germany | 1936 | Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe | Ford Trimotor | Zumpango, Mexico | ||
Malaysia | 1997 | Entrepreneur, founder of DRB-HICOM | Agusta A109P | Kuala Lipis, Pahang, Malaysia | Mid-air explosion | ||
United Kingdom | 1919 | Aviator who flew the first non-stop flight across the Atlantic | Vickers Viking | Cottévrard, near Rouen, France | Plane stalled and crashed in fog | ||
Brazil | 1967 | Former President of Brazil | Piper Aztec | Fortaleza, Brazil | In mid-air collision with a Brazilian Air Force Lockheed T-33 | ||
United States | 1993 | NASCAR driver | Hughes 369 | Talladega, Alabama, United States | Pilot error[2] | ||
Israel | 1948 | Military, first IAF pilot to command a combat squadron and to score an aerial victory | Avia S-199 | Herzliya, Israel | Struck terrain nose-down after apparent engine trouble during a gear-up landing attempt | ||
Sweden | 1977 | Table tennis player | Linjeflyg Flight 618 | Kälvesta, Sweden | Icing of tailplane caused by engines being operated at too low a power setting for anti-ice to be effective | ||
Norway | 1928 | Explorer | Latham 47 | Barents Sea | Disappearance | ||
Korea | 1930 | Aviator | Taiyuan, China | [3] | |||
United States | 1983 | Record-setting hot-air balloonist | Hot-air balloon | Near Bad Brückenau, West Germany | Gondola release mechanism malfunction | ||
United States | 1999 | Minnesota Air National Guard test pilot | Cirrus SR20 | Federal Prison Camp, Duluth | Aileron jam during early production flight testing[4] | ||
Sweden | 1922 | Aviator, parachutist | Parachute | Askersund, Sweden | Parachute failure | ||
Argentina | 2018 | Racing driver, Turismo Carretera | Pitts Special | Carreras, Santa Fe Province, Argentina | [5] | ||
United States | 2001 | Producer | American Airlines Flight 11 | World Trade Center North Tower, New York City | 9/11 hijacking by Mohamed Atta | ||
Finland | 1941 | Communist leader, military officer | Arkhangelsk, Soviet Union | Was allegedly killed in a plane crash, but some claim he died in Moscow under suspicious circumstances. | |||
United States | 2012 | CEO of Micron at time of incident | Lancair IV-P | Boise Airport, Idaho, United States | Error during emergency landing | ||
United Kingdom | 1942 | Army Officer and Member of Parliament | Handley Page Halifax | Luqa, Malta | Crashed on takeoff | ||
United States | 1956 | Test pilot | Bell X-2 | Edwards AFB, California, United States | Pilot error | ||
Iraq | 1966 | President of Iraq | de Havilland Dove 1 | Southern Iraq | Crashed in a sand storm | ||
France | 2015 | Sailor | Eurocopter AS350 | Villa Castelli, Argentina | Collided in mid-air; see Villa Castelli helicopter collision | ||
Canada | 2001 | ice hockey player (NHL) | United Airlines Flight 175 | World Trade Center South Tower, New York City | 9/11 hijacking by Marwan al-Shehhi | ||
United Kingdom | 1942 | World War I flying ace | Martin-Baker MB 3 | RAF Wing, Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom | Engine failure | ||
France | 1986 | Singer and songwriter | Aérospatiale AS350 Ecureuil | Gourma-Rharous, Mali | Controlled flight into terrain during a sandstorm, with Thierry Sabine when crashed | ||
India | 2002 | Politician | Bell 206 | Kaikalur, India | Mechanical failure, pilot error | ||
Italy | 1940 | Governor-General of Italian Libya | Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 | Tobruk, Italian North Africa | Shot down by friendly fire, Italian anti-aircraft batteries defending the airfield misidentified the aircraft as British | ||
Canada | 1941 | Scientist, co-discovered insulin | Lockheed Hudson | Musgrave Harbour, Newfoundland, Canada | Engine problems | ||
West Germany | 1957 | Test pilot | LF-1 Zaunkönig | Braunschweig, West Germany | Lost control of aircraft | ||
Italy | 2009 | Conductor and composer | Air France Flight 447 | Atlantic Ocean | Pilot error | ||
Canada | 1951 | Ice hockey player (NHL) | Fairchild 24 | 100 km N of Cochrane, Ontario, Canada | Pilot inexperience, poor weather, overloaded cargo | ||
Bolivia | 1969 | President of Bolivia | helicopter | Arque, Cochabamba Department, Bolivia | Rotors caught on power lines | ||
United States | 1966 | Astronaut | Northrop T-38 Talon | St. Louis, Missouri, United States | With Elliot See; 1966 NASA T-38 crash | ||
Czechoslovakia | 1932 | Founder of Bata Shoes company | Junkers F.13 | Otrokovice, Czechoslovakia | Poor weather | ||
United States | 2001 | Ice hockey player (AHL) | United Airlines Flight 175 | World Trade Center South Tower, New York City | 9/11 hijacking by Marwan al-Shehhi | ||
United States | 1915 | Aviator, stunt flyer | Beachey-Eaton Monoplane[6] | San Francisco, California, United States | Demonstrating inverted flight at the Panama–Pacific International Exposition. Structural failure while attempting to pull up. | ||
United States | 2001 | Oracle Corporation employee | United Airlines Flight 93 | Shanksville, Pennsylvania, United States | 9/11 hijacking by Ziad Jarrah | ||
United States | 1943 | Politician, mayor of St. Louis | Waco CG-4A-RO | Lambert Field, St. Louis, Missouri, United States | Loss of right wing due to wing strut fitting failure during demonstration flight;[7] Maj. William B. Robertson also dies in this accident[8] | ||
United States | 1972 | US Congressman from Alaska | Cessna 310 | Alaska, United States | Disappeared, body never recovered, presumed dead. Hale Boggs was also on this flight. | ||
United Kingdom | 1978 | Racing car designer, driver and founder / owner of Chevron Cars Ltd | Hiway Scorpion B hang glider | Lancashire, United Kingdom | Competed in a competitive event organized by his club. Pilot error likely to have caused by stall whilst attempting a challenging maneuvre. The pilot had 18 months flying experience.[9] | ||
United States | 2001 | entertainer, actress, and photographer | American Airlines Flight 11 | World Trade Center North Tower, New York City | 9/11 hijacking by Mohamed Atta | ||
United States | 1996 | Quarterback for the Nebraska Cornhuskers | Piper J-3 Cub | Raymond, Nebraska, United States | Pilot error (loss of engine power because of fuel valve mis-position)[10] | ||
United States | 1927 | Aviator | Old Glory | North Atlantic | Aircraft crashed during an attempt at a transatlantic flight from the United States to Italy. | ||
United States | 1999 | Sister-in-law of John F. Kennedy Jr. | Piper Saratoga | Martha's Vineyard, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, United States | Pilot error; see John F. Kennedy Jr. plane crash | ||
United States | 1999 | Wife of John F. Kennedy Jr. | Piper Saratoga | Martha's Vineyard, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, United States | Pilot error; see John F. Kennedy Jr. plane crash | ||
United States | 2000 | CART racing driver/owner | Beechcraft Baron | Ann Milton Adams' farm, Harrison County, Kentucky, United States | Airframe icing | ||
United States | 2001 | Video producer and director music video | American Airlines Flight 11 | World Trade Center North Tower, New York City | 9/11 hijacking by Mohamed Atta | ||
Canada | 1948 | World War II ace pilot | Noorduyn Norseman | Rome, Italy | Possible sabotage | ||
India | 1986 | Flight attendant who saved lives during a hijacking | Pan Am Flight 73 | Karachi, Pakistan | Hijacking | ||
India | 1966 | Nuclear physicist | Air India Flight 101 | Mont Blanc, France | Flight dispatched without necessary navigation equipment for the route being flown | ||
Yugoslavia | 1977 | Premier of Yugoslavia | Learjet 25 | Kreševo, Yugoslavia | Poor weather conditions | ||
Saudi Arabia | 1967 | Entrepreneur and father of Osama bin Laden | Beechcraft Model 18 | Oom, 'Asir Province, Saudi Arabia | |||
Saudi Arabia | 1988 | Entrepreneur and half-brother of Osama bin Laden | Sprint ultra-light aircraft | San Antonio, Texas, United States | Flew into power lines | ||
United States | 2001 | Public relations executive | United Airlines Flight 93 | Shanksville, Pennsylvania, United States | 9/11 hijacking by Ziad Jarrah | ||
France | 1809 | Hot air ballooning pioneer | Hot air balloon | The Hague, Netherlands | Died from injuries sustained after falling out of a balloon during cardiac arrest | ||
France | 1819 | Female ballooning pioneer | Hot air balloon | Jardin de Tivoli, Paris, France | Fell to her death after the balloon caught fire | ||
Central African Republic | 1959 | 1st Prime Minister of the Central African Republic | Nord Noratlas | Boda, Lobaye, Central African Republic | Mid-air explosion | ||
United States | 1972 | Politician, US Congressman from Louisiana | Cessna 310 | southern Alaska, United States | Disappeared, body never recovered, presumed dead. Nick Begich was also in this flight. | ||
United States | 1984 | US Air Force lieutenant general | MIG-23 | Jackass Flats, Nevada, United States | Reacted improperly to afterburner malfunction, lost aircraft control, fatally injured ejecting at excessive speed[11] | ||
United States | 1945 | World War II fighter ace and test pilot | Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star | Burbank, California, United States | Pilot error | ||
Billy Joe Booth | United States | 1972 | Canadian football player for the Ottawa Rough Riders | Piper Cherokee | Dorchester, Ontario, Canada | Thunderstorm | |
United States | 1999 | Golf course designer | Learjet 35 | Mina, South Dakota, United States | Hypoxia
| ||
India | 1945 | Politician and freedom fighter | Mitsubishi Ki-21 | Taipei, Japanese Taiwan (alleged) | Cause disputed | ||
Mauritania | 1979 | Politician, Prime Minister of Mauritania | de Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo | Dakar, Senegal | |||
United States | 2011 | Businessman and former Oklahoma state senator | Piper PA-28 Cherokee N7746W | Perryville, Arkansas, United States | Controlled flight into terrain | ||
France | 1996 | Ice hockey defenseman for the Ligue Magnus | TWA Flight 800 | East Moriches, New York, United States | Mid-air explosion | ||
United States | 1996 | Politician, US Secretary of Commerce | Boeing CT-43 | Dubrovnik, Croatia | pilot error | ||
United States | 2020 | Retired NBA all-star basketball player | Sikorsky S-76 | Calabasas, California, United States | Uncontrolled flight into terrain due to pilot error (continued VFR into IMC) and spatial disorientation; John Altobelli also died in the crash. See 2020 Calabasas Helicopter Crash.[12] | ||
Germany | 2015 | Bass-baritone opera singer | Germanwings Flight 9525 | Prads-Haute-Bléone, France | Deliberate flight into terrain | ||
United States | 2011 | College basketball coach | Piper PA-28 Cherokee N7746W | Perryville, Arkansas, United States | Controlled flight into terrain | ||
United Kingdom | 1933 | Politician | Hawker Hart | RAF Hendon | Aircraft failed to recover from dive while practising display for air pageant | ||
United States | 1944 | Test pilot for Lockheed | Lockheed YP-80 Shooting Star | Burbank, California, United States | Engine flame-out | ||
United States | 2001 | Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Thoratec Corporation | United Airlines Flight 93 | Shanksville, Pennsylvania, United States | 9/11 hijacking by Ziad Jarrah | ||
United States | 1941 | Politician; US Congressman from Maryland | Eastern Air Lines Flight 21 | Atlanta, Georgia, United States | Inadvertently descended into trees due to incorrect altimeter setting. Eddie Rickenbacker survived this crash. | ||
Philippines | 1957 | Philippine senator | Douglas C-47 Skytrain | Cebu City, Philippines (22 mi NW) | See 1957 Cebu Douglas C-47 crash | ||
Chile | 2011 | Television presenter (Television Nacional de Chile) | Chilean Air Force CASA C-212 Aviocar | off Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile | Loss of control in adverse weather | ||
Brazil | 2014 | Politician, presidential candidate in Brazilian general election, 2014 | 2014 Santos Cessna Citation accident | Santos, Brazil | Nose-down collision with ground during poor weather shortly after aborting landing, caused by pilot disorientation. | ||
Mexico | 1983 | Entertainer, actress | Aviaco Flight 134 | Madrid, Spain | Collision resulting from runway incursion, caused by poor visibility and taxiway signage | ||
Italy | 1956 | Orchestra conductor | 1956 Paris DC-6 crash | Paris-Orly Airport, France | Crashed on takeoff[13] See 1956 Paris DC-6 crash | ||
Romania | 1912 | Army officer, first Romanian airplane accident casualty | Farman | Bucharest, Romania | Plane crash during training on Cotroceni Airfield | ||
United States | 2000 | Governor of Missouri | Cessna 335 | Goldman, Missouri, United States | Thunderstorm | ||
Sweden | 1988 | Assistant-Secretary-General of the UN, UN Commissioner for Namibia | Pan Am Flight 103 | Lockerbie, Scotland, United Kingdom | Terrorism | ||
Mexico | 1928 | Mexican "Charles Lindbergh" | Ryan Brougham[14] | Tabernacle, New Jersey, United States | Weather? | ||
United States | 1991 | Astronaut | Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 2311 | Brunswick, Georgia, United States | Malfunction of the left engine propeller control unit. Senator John Tower also died in this crash. | ||
Italy | 1985 | Actor | Bell 206B | Page, Arizona, United States | Rotor blades struck bridge due to pilot error and aircraft fell into canyon[15] during filming of Vendetta dal futuro | ||
United States | 1948 | Sister of U.S. President John F. Kennedy | de Havilland Dove | Saint-Bauzile, Ardèche, France | |||
Greece | 1937 | Princess of Greece and Denmark, sister of Prince Philip | Junkers Ju 52 | Ostend, Belgium | Crashed into a factory chimney; see Sabena OO-AUB Ostend crash | ||
Sweden | 1918 | Aviator | Blériot XI[16] | Gulf of Bothnia | |||
France | 1949 | World boxing champion | Lockheed Constellation | São Miguel Island, Azores, Portugal | Controlled flight into terrain, mountain | ||
United Kingdom | 1939 | Motorcycle speedway rider | Slingsby Petrel | Great Hucklow, Derbyshire, East Midlands, England | Died in gliding competition | ||
United States | 1974 | Trumpet player and band leader | Piper PA-30 Twin Comanche | Jackson, Minnesota, United States | Poor weather[17] | ||
Peru | 1910 | Aviator | Blériot XI[18] | Domodossola, Italy | Inadequate repairs to aircraft | ||
Venezuela | 1969 | Major League Baseball player | Viasa Flight 742 | Maracaibo, Venezuela | Struck power lines during takeoff | ||
Russia | 2023 | Head of logistics of Wagner Group | Embraer Legacy 600 | Kuzhenkino, Tver Oblast, Russia | Under investigation | ||
Soviet Union | 1972 | Actor, parodist | Aeroflot Flight 1491 | Kharkiv, Soviet Union | Structural failure leading to a loss of control | ||
Germany | 1943 | Prince of Hesse, nephew of Wilhelm II | Siebel Fh 104 Hallore | Forlì, Italy | |||
United States | 2017 | American racing driver | Mooney M20-C | North Branford, Connecticut | Total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as the result of foreign object debris in the fuel selector valve[19] | ||
Cuba | 1959 | Revolutionary | Cessna 310 | Caribbean | Disappeared, body never recovered, presumed dead | ||
Spain | 1936 | Inventor of the autogyro | KLM Douglas DC-2 | Croydon Air Port, South London | Aircraft hit house after taking off in fog. Arvid Lindman was also killed. | ||
United States | 1949 | Entertainer and singer | Cessna | Los Angeles, United States | Pilot error | ||
Puerto Rico | 1972 | Major League Baseball player | Douglas DC-7 | off the coast of Isla Verde, Puerto Rico | Mechanical problems; overloaded plane | ||
United States | 1963 | Entertainer and country singer | Piper Comanche | Camden, Tennessee, United States | Severe weather; Cowboy Copas and Hawkshaw Hawkins were also killed in this accident. | ||
United Kingdom | 1837 | Watercolour artist and amateur scientist | Dihedral Parachute | Lee Green, England | Parachute broke up in mid-air after release from a balloon[20] | ||
United States | 1913 | Aviation pioneer and showman | Cody Floatplane | Farnborough, Hampshire, England | Aircraft broke up at 200 ft; thrown out of aircraft | ||
United States | 1926 | Aviator, first African-American woman pilot | Curtiss JN-4 | Jacksonville, Florida, United States | Thrown from aircraft after controls jammed while she was riding as a passenger. She was not wearing a seatbelt. | ||
United States | 2000 | Entertainer, WGN (AM) radio personality | Zlín Z 42 | Waukegan, Illinois, United States | Mid-air collision | ||
United States | 1972 | Politician, US Congressman from Illinois | United Airlines Flight 553 | Chicago, United States | Pilot error | ||
United States | 1962 | United States Navy admiral | American Airlines Flight 1 | Jamaica Bay, Queens, New York, United States | Loss of control at takeoff due to autopilot malfunction caused by electrical short | ||
United States | 1921 | Politician, former US Congressman from Iowa | Curtiss Eagle | Indian Head, Maryland, United States | Severe weather | ||
United States | 1914 | Aviator | Wright aircraft | Pueblo, Colorado, United States | [21] | ||
United Kingdom | 1974 | athlete, silver medalist at the 1964 Summer Olympics | Turkish Airlines Flight 981 | Ermenonville, France | Cargo hatch and control cable failures | ||
United States | 1963 | Entertainer and country music singer | Piper Comanche | Camden, Tennessee, United States | Severe weather; Patsy Cline and Hawkshaw Hawkins were also killed in this accident. | ||
United States | 1994 | Cessna 150 | Washington, D.C., United States | Intentionally crashed a stolen airplane on the White House lawn | |||
France | 1979 | Oceanographer | PBY Catalina | Lisbon, Portugal | Nosed over during high-speed water taxi | ||
United Kingdom | 2011 | Record breaking stunt performer | Piper PA-30 Twin Comanche | Mont Agel, France | Crashed while flying through dense fog at low altitude[22] [23] [24] | ||
United States | 1973 | Entertainer and singer | Beechcraft Model 18 | Natchitoches, Louisiana, United States | Collision with trees[25] | ||
South Africa | 2002 | Cricket captain | Hawker Siddeley HS 748 | George, Western Cape, South Africa | Unserviceable navigational equipment | ||
United States | 2006 | Test pilot | Cessna 210 | Gordon County, Georgia, United States | Aircraft broke up in thunderstorm; ATC error; pilot error | ||
United States | 2009 | Stunt pilot | Zivko Edge 540 | Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire, England | Crashed during competition aerobatics. Aircraft failed to recover from a downwards snap roll manoeuvre, causing it to rotate until it struck the ground.[26] [27] | ||
Dominican Republic | 1970 | World boxing champion | Dominicana DC-9 air disaster | Punta Caucedo | Fuel contamination | ||
United States | 1996 | American National Football League player | ValuJet Flight 592 | Florida Everglades, United States | Fire in-flight | ||
United States | 1935 | Politician, US Senator from New Mexico | TWA Douglas DC-2 | Atlanta, Missouri, United States | Bad weather | ||
Portugal | 1980 | Politician, defense minister of Portugal | Cessna 421 | Loures, Portugal | Sabotage | ||
France | 1996 | Entertainer and musician | TWA Flight 800 | East Moriches, New York (8 mi E) | Mid-air explosion | ||
United States | 1956 | Aviator during the Spanish Civil War | Douglas DC-3 | Canada | Severe weather | ||
Lithuania | 1933 | Aviator | Lituanica | Pszczelnik, Myślibórz County, Poland | |||
United Kingdom | 1954 | Cricketer | Boeing 377 | Prestwick, Scotland | |||
United Kingdom | 1958 | Cricketer and journalist | Munich air disaster | Munich, West Germany | Failure to take off due to slush on runway | ||
France | 2021 | Billionaire and French MP | Eurocopter AS350 Écureuil | Deauville, Northwestern France | Under investigation | ||
Australia | 2014 | Author | Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 | Hrabove, Ukraine | Airliner shot down[28] | ||
United Kingdom | 1946 | Test pilot | de Havilland DH 108 | Hoo Peninsula | Aircraft broke up while carrying out high-speed tests | ||
United Kingdom | 1943 | Test pilot | de Havilland Mosquito | Hatfield, England | Mid-air collision | ||
France | 1910 | Aviator and sculptor | Bleriot XI | Bordeaux, France | |||
United States | 2021 | Businessman and space tourist | Cessna 172 | Hampton Township, New Jersey, United States | Crash in a heavily wooded area | ||
United States | 1923 | Stunt pilot, airport owner, aviation-school owner | the "Wasp" | Venice, Los Angeles, California, United States | Substandard wing pins | ||
South Africa | 2013 | Aviator | Extra EA-300 | Secunda, Mpumalanga | Crashed during an airshow[29] | ||
United States | 1997 | Entertainer, singer, songwriter, actor | Rutan Long-EZ | Pacific Grove, California, United States | Aircraft unfamiliarity; faulty assembly (deviation from original design) | ||
United States | 2009 | Human rights investigator and expert on the Rwandan genocide | Colgan Air Flight 3407[30] | Clarence Center, New York | Icing, pilot error | ||
Brazil | 2019 | Singer and songwriter | Piper PA-28 Cherokee | Estância, Sergipe, Brazil | Crashed in bad weather | ||
Brazil | 1972 | Actress | Japan Airlines Flight 471 | New Delhi, India | Controlled flight into terrain | ||
France | 1988 | racing car driver | Mitsubishi MU-2[31] | Saint-Étienne, France | |||
Germany | 1937 | Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse | Junkers Ju 52 | Ostend, Belgium | crashed into a factory chimney | ||
United States | 1986 | Actress and radio station traffic reporter | Enstrom F-28 | New York City | Main rotor seizure due to improper maintenance. Dornacker was live on the air for WNBC (AM) at the time of the crash. | ||
United States | 2004 | Chief engine builder of Hendrick Motorsports | Beechcraft Super King Air 200 | Martinsville, Virginia, United States | Pilot error. Several members of Hendrick family also died including Ricky Hendrick. | ||
France | 1928 | Aviator, test pilot | Couzinet 27 | France | Aircraft failure | ||
United States | 1996 | Aviator, 7-year-old aspiring pilot | Cessna 177 | Cheyenne, Wyoming, United States | Aircraft lost control in thunderstorm; deliberate takeoff because of media commitments; pilot error | ||
United States | 1943 | Aviator, United States Army Air Forces Lieutenant Colonel | Lockheed P-38 Lightning | Burbank, California, United States | Aircraft caught fire while on a training mission near highly populated Burbank, California. Instead of parachuting to safety, he remained at the controls and saved countless civilian lives by guiding it into a vacant lot. | ||
United States | 1937 | Aviator, pioneer woman pilot | Lockheed Model 10 Electra | Pacific Ocean, near Howland Island | Disappeared together with navigator Fred Noonan during global circumnavigation attempt, cause undetermined, body and aircraft never found; see speculation on Earhart's disappearance | ||
United States | 2009 | Activist, co-chair of the 9/11 Family Steering Committee | Colgan Air Flight 3407 | Clarence Center, New York | Icing; pilot error | ||
United States | 1948 | Test pilot, namesake of Edwards AFB | Northrop YB-49 | Edwards Air Force Base, United States | aircraft broke apart | ||
United States | 1953 | Aviator, United States Air Force Brigadier General | Convair B-36 | Trinity Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador | Controlled flight into terrain into a hill | ||
United States | 1928 | First American naval aviator | Loening OL-7[32] | Chesapeake Bay | |||
United States | 1911 | Aviator, pioneer pilot in American naval aviation | Curtiss Model D[33] | Macon, Georgia, United States | Crashed while pulling from a dive. | ||
United States | 1911 | Inventor, Aviator | Evergreen monoplane glider | San Jose, California, United States | turbulence, which caused a stall. | ||
United States | 1943 | Rear-Admiral, Commander, Submarines, U.S. Pacific Fleet | Pan Am Flight 1104 | near Ukiah, California, United States | pilot error | ||
Austria | 1982 | Formula One racer | Beechcraft Bonanza | Niederweidbach, NW Giessen, Germany | engine failure | ||
Paraguay | 1940 | President of Paraguay | Potez 25 | Altos, Paraguay | |||
United States | 1985 | Project manager for IBM PC | Delta Air Lines Flight 191[34] | Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, United States | Microburst-induced wind shear | ||
United Kingdom | 1913 | Cricketer | Cody Floatplane | Farnborough, Hampshire, England | Aircraft broke up at 200 ft, thrown out of aircraft | ||
United Kingdom | 2009 | Aisplay pilot | Percival Provost | Bishop Norton, Lincolnshire, England | |||
Russia | 2003 | Politician, governor of Sakhalin | Mil Mi-8 | Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia | pilot error | ||
France | 1909 | Aviation pioneer | Voisin biplane | Boulogne-sur-Mer, France | pilot error | ||
Brazil | 2014 | Footballer | Helibras AS 350BA | Aruanã River, 9 miles from Aruanã, Goiás | under investigation | ||
United States | 1980 | Aviator, ace pilot in the Korean War | Piper Geronimo | Grand Bahama Island | |||
United Kingdom | 1931 | Game hunter | de Havilland Gypsy Moth | Voi, Kenya | |||
United Kingdom | 1962 | Racing car driver, 24 Hours of Le Mans winner | CAC Mustang | Australia | Lost control in cloud | ||
United States | 1943 | First WAFS fatality | Vultee BT-13 Valiant | 10 miles south of Merkel, Texas, United States | mid-air collision | ||
United States | 2007 | Entrepreneur, commodities trader | American Champion Decathlon | Sierra Nevada Mountains, United States | pilot error following downdrafts resulting in Controlled flight into terrain | ||
United States | 2005 | Aviator, aerobatic pilot | Waco UPF-7 | Moose Jaw, Canada | collision with Bobby Younkin | ||
East Germany | 1989 | Berlin Wall defectee | Homemade balloon | Zehlendorf, Berlin | Cause of crash unknown, fell into a garden of a villa in an attempt to defect to West Berlin. | ||
Germany | 1995 | Scientist and astronaut | Messerschmitt Bf 108 | Berlin | lost control of aircraft | ||
Soviet Union | 1968 | First man in space | Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15UTI | Kirzhach | unknown | ||
India | 1980 | Son of Indira Gandhi | Pitts S-2A Special | Safdarjung Airport, New Delhi, India | pilot error | ||
United States | 1988 | CIA Officer | Pan Am Flight 103 | Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland | Terrorist bomb | ||
Sudan | 2005 | Vice President of Sudan | Mil Mi-17 | South Sudan | Controlled flight into terrain (mountains), disputed[35] | ||
Argentina | 1935 | Singer | Ford Trimotor | Medellin, Colombia | SACO Trimotor collided with a Trimotor of SCADTA while preparing for takeoff[36] | ||
United States | 1956 | Major League Baseball player | Ercoupe[37] | Riviera Beach, Maryland | |||
United States | 1927 | Army Major, aviation pioneer, namesake of Geiger Field | Airco DH.4 | Olmsted Field, Pennsylvania | |||
United States | 1978 | Producer and creator of Mission: Impossible | Cessna Skymaster | Santa Barbara, California | Weather conditions | ||
United Kingdom | 1948 | High Commissioner for the Federation of Malaya | Avro York | Northwood, London | Northwood mid-air collision | ||
United States | 2017 | Entertainer, country music singer and guitarist | Schweizer 269C | Medford, New Jersey | Uncontrolled descent during a power-off autorotation landing attempt; see 2017 Medford, New Jersey helicopter crash | ||
United Kingdom | 1942 | Duke of Kent | Short Sunderland | Scotland | Controlled flight into terrain in bad weather | ||
Afghanistan | 1997 | Prime minister of the Northern Alliance government | Antonov An-32 | Bamyan Province, Afghanistan | |||
Lithuania | 1933 | Aviator | Lituanica | Pszczelnik, Myślibórz County, Poland | |||
United States | 2001 | Marketing executive | United Airlines Flight 93 | Shanksville, Pennsylvania, United States | hijacking by Ziad Jarrah | ||
Paraguay | 2018 | Minister of Agriculture and Livestock of Paraguay | Beechcraft Baron | Ayolas, Paraguay | aircraft crashed shortly after take-off[38] | ||
United Kingdom | 1910 | Aviator | Short S.27 | English Channel | Disappeared, body never recovered, presumed dead | ||
Brazil | 1982 | Martial artist, practitioner of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu | hang glider | Mauá, São Paulo, Brazil | |||
United States | 1991 | Rock concert promoter | Bell 206 | Vallejo, California | Flew into power lines | ||
United States | 1982 | Aviator, test pilot | Cessna T-37 Tweet | Edwards Air Force Base | |||
United States | 1982 | Entertainer, contemporary Christian musician | Cessna 414 | Lindale, Texas | aircraft overloaded | ||
Sweden | 1946 | Expressionist painter, modernist | Junkers Ju 52[39] | Oslo, Norway | |||
West Germany | 1959 | Zoologist | Dornier Do 27 | Serengeti, Tanzania | collision with vulture | ||
Sweden | 1947 | Swedish Prince, Duke of Västerbotten | Douglas DC-3 | Kastrup, Denmark | Locked elevator, pilot error | ||
Germany | 1956 | Motorcycle racer | Jodel D9 Bebe | near Neuburg/Donau, Germany | [40] | ||
Rwanda | 1994 | President of Rwanda | Dassault Falcon 50 | Kigali, Rwanda | Aircraft shot down by unknown assassins
| ||
United States | 2017 | Baseball player | ICON A5 | Gulf of Mexico | [41] | ||
United States | 1977 | City Manager of San Jose, California | Tenerife disaster | Canary Islands, Spain | Airplane collision | ||
United Kingdom | 1932 | Soldier and politician | Junkers F13 | Meopham, Kent, United Kingdom | Structural failure | ||
Sweden | 1961 | Secretary-General of the United Nations 1953–1961 | Douglas DC-6B | Crashed into terrain, cause undetermined, possibly pilot error or external attack;[42] see 1961 Ndola United Nations DC-6 crash | |||
United Kingdom | 1941 | Motorcycle racer | Bell P-39 Airacobra | Kirkbampton, Cumberland, England | |||
United States | 1991 | Major League Baseball player | Beechcraft Bonanza | Key West, Florida | Propeller failure | ||
United Kingdom | 1996 | Vice-chairman of Chelsea Football Club | Aerospatiale AS355 F1 Squirrel | Middlewich, Cheshire, England | Pilot error[43] | ||
Australia | 1941 | Senator | Airlines of Australia de Havilland Puss Moth | Coen River, Australia | Mechanical fault | ||
United Kingdom | 1950 | Second world war fighter ace | Gloster Meteor | Near Sheffield, Yorkshire, England | fuel exhaustion | ||
United Kingdom | 1968 | Air stewardess | Boeing 707 | Heathrow Airport, London | Awarded George Cross for her actions during the fire that befell BOAC Flight 712 | ||
Australia | 1938 | Cabinet minister | Mount Dandenong (Victoria), Australia | Pilot error; 18 fatalities | |||
Australia | 1921 | Aviator, pioneer and co-founder of Hawker Aircraft | Nieuport Goshawk | Hendon Aerodrome, Hendon, north London, England | Distraction of a hemorrhage while in flight cause a crash. | ||
United States | 1963 | Entertainer, country music singer | Piper Comanche | Camden, Tennessee | crashed in bad weather; Patsy Cline and Cowboy Copas were also killed in this accident. | ||
United States | 1991 | US Senator | Piper Aerostar | Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania | Collided with Bell 412 during aerial landing gear inspection;[44] see 1991 Merion mid-air collision | ||
United States | 2012 | State legislator from Alaska | Cessna 206 | in Beluga Lake, Alaska near Homer Airport | plane flipped upon landing | ||
Australia | 1972 | Environmental activist | de Havilland Tiger Moth | en route from Tasmania to Canberra | vanished | ||
United States | 1951 | Racing driver | Piper PA-20 Pacer[45] | Kern County, California | |||
United States | 2004 | Racing driver, son of Rick Hendrick and owner of Hendrick Motorsports | Beechcraft Super King Air 200 | Martinsville, Virginia | Pilot error. Several members of the Hendrick family and Randy Dorton also died in the crash. | ||
New Zealand | 2013 | Business executive at telecom company 2degrees | Beechcraft Baron | Tasman Sea off Kawhia Harbour | Airspeed decayed for undetermined reasons and aircraft entered a spin[46] | ||
Singapore | 1997 | Model, writer | SilkAir Flight 185 | Palembang, Indonesia | Crashed during flight | ||
United Kingdom | 1975 | F1 racing driver | Piper PA 23-250 Turbo-Aztec | Near Arkley golf course, North London | See Graham Hill plane crash. Hit trees when coming in to land due to fog.[47] | ||
United States | 1927 | Aviator | Old Glory | North Atlantic | Aircraft crashed during an attempt at a transatlantic flight from the United States to Italy. | ||
United States | 1935 | Test pilot | Boeing Model 299 | Wright Field, Ohio | Failure to remove gust locks before flight. Les Tower also died in this crash. | ||
United States | 1995 | Business executive, founder of DHL Express | Republic RC-3 Seabee | Saipan | Disappeared[48] [49] | ||
United Kingdom | 1938 | Racecar driver and aviator, Le Mans 24 Hours winner | Hawker Hurricane I | St. George's Hill, Weybridge | aircraft failed to recover from dive, possible carbon monoxide poisoning of pilot | ||
Australia | 1933 | Aviator | de Havilland Puss Moth | Pratomagno Alps in Italy | |||
United Kingdom | 2003 | Motorcycle racer, Isle of Man TT winner | Robinson R44 | Hawick, Scotland | Crashed after the main rotor struck the tailboom, causing it to detach, probably caused by excessively low rotor RPM[50] | ||
United States | 1944 | Polo player | North American P-51 Mustang | Salisbury, Wiltshire, England | aircraft failed to recover from dive | ||
United States | 1988 | Racing driver, 24 Hours of Le Mans winner | Piper Aerostar 601P | Ohio State University Airport, Columbus, Ohio | lost control after takeoff with one half of two-part entry door open[51] | ||
United States | 1959 | Singer-songwriter | Beechcraft Bonanza | Clear Lake, IA | Pilot error continued VFR into IMC; J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson and Ritchie Valens were also killed in this accident (see The Day the Music Died). | ||
United States | 2015 | Film score composer | Short Tucano | Los Padres National Forest, California | Under investigation[52] | ||
Kingdom of Hungary (1920–46) | Hungary | 1942 | Deputy Regent of Hungary | MÁVAG Héja | Ilovskoye, Soviet Union | aircraft stalled and crashed | |
Great Britain | 1943 | English stage and screen actor | KLM Royal Dutch Airlines/BOAC Flight 777/Douglas DC-3 | Commercial flight from Portugal to England, shot down in Bay of Biscay by Luftwaffe | All 17 passengers and crew killed | ||
United States | 1964 | Major League Baseball player | Cessna 172 | Provo, Utah | continued VFR into IMC | ||
United States | 2007 | Aviator and aircraft racer | modified Tuttle Cassutt IIIM | Reno, Nevada | Collision with another airplane during the Reno Air Races Formula One race | ||
Viera Husáková | Czechoslovakia | 1977 | First lady of Czechoslovakia | Mil Mi-8 | Bratislava Airport, Czechoslovakia (now Slovakia) | pilot error, insufficient orientation during a landing attempt in a dense fog | |
Steven Hyde | United States | 1989 | CEO of Trump Casino | Agusta 109A helicopter | Forked River, New Jersey | Helicopter crashed when overhead and tail rotors broke off from the craft; also killed were fellow Trump Casino executives Mark Grossinger Ettes and Jonathan Benanav.[53] Company founder (and future U.S. president) Donald Trump was reportedly scheduled to go with them on the flight, but cancelled at the last minute.[54] | |
Mexico | 1983 | Novelist and playwright | Avianca Flight 011 | Madrid, Spain | Improper navigation during approach | ||
Mexico | 1957 | Entertainer, singer and actor | Consolidated B-24 Liberator | Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico | |||
Ireland | 1972 | Tennis player | British European Airways Flight 548[55] | Staines-upon-Thames, England | pilot error | ||
Pakistan | 2016 | Singer | Pakistan International Airlines Flight 661 | Havelian, Pakistan | Engine failure | ||
Poland | 1980 | Entertainer, singer | LOT Polish Airlines Flight 007 | Warsaw, Poland | Struck trees during landing go around | ||
[56] | Malaysia | 2014 | Actress | Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 | Hrabove, Ukraine | Airliner shootdown | |
Jayan | India | 1980 | Entertainer, Malayalam film actor | helicopter | Sholavaram, Tamil Nadu | accident while performing a film stunt | |
United Kingdom | 1988 | Musician | Pan Am Flight 103 | Lockerbie, Scotland | terrorism | ||
United Kingdom | 1941 | Aviator, pioneer woman pilot | Airspeed Oxford | Thames Estuary | fuel exhaustion while ferrying aircraft due to 100% cloud cover at destination. Pilot abandoned aircraft over water and succumbed to hypothermia before rescue | ||
United States | 1996 | Designer | TWA Flight 800 | East Moriches, New York (8 mi E) | Mid-air explosion | ||
United States | 1937 | Adventurer and film producer | Western Air Express Flight 7 | near Saugus, California | Controlled flight into terrain into mountainous terrain | ||
United States | 1910 | Aviator, first American pilot fatality | Wright Model B | Denver, Colorado | Crashed on 17 November 1910 | ||
United States | 2001 | Astronaut | American Airlines Flight 11 | World Trade Center North Tower, New York City | hijacking by Mohamed Atta | ||
Poland | 2010 | President of Poland | Polish Air Force Tupolev Tu-154 | Smolensk North Airport, Russia | Officially attributed to controlled flight into terrain due to pilot error, but official findings are disputed; see 2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash | ||
Sweden | 1968 | Theoretical physicist, professor | Cessna[57] | Hanover, Germany | private plane | ||
Finland | 1930 | Aviator, polar explorer | Junkers W 33 | Sangar, Soviet Union | Finnish-born Soviet aviator who crashed in a heavy snow storm | ||
Egypt | 1950 | Swimmer | Spitfire | Port Said, Egypt | Egyptian swimmer who was killed in a plane crash while serving with the Egyptian Air Force when his Spitfire collided in mid-air with another Spitfire over Port Said. | ||
Greece | 1995 | Computer scientist, professor | American Airlines Flight 965 | Buga, Colombia | Navigational errors by flight crew | ||
United States | 1953 | Classical pianist | BCPA Flight 304 | near Woodside, California | Controlled flight into terrain into mountainous terrain | ||
Lebanon | 1987 | Prime Minister of Lebanon | Aérospatiale Puma | Lebanon | bomb | ||
United States | 1929 | US Congressman from Massachusetts | Fokker F.VII[58] | Bolling Field near Washington, D.C. | |||
United States | 1911 | Fourth American pilot killed, second in a military aircraft | Curtiss Model D | San Antonio, Texas | Aviator. Crashed from broken strut. | ||
Australia | 1983 | film director | Bell 206B JetRanger | Warragamba Dam, New South Wales, Australia | Helicopter was flying at 10-foot when it hit the water with the rear of the skids when it attempted to climb, pilot error. | ||
United States | 1999 | son of John F. Kennedy | Piper PA-32R | Atlantic Ocean off Martha's Vineyard | pilot error | ||
United States | 1944 | older brother of John F. Kennedy | Consolidated B-24 Liberator modified as a flying bomb | near Blythburgh, Suffolk, England | Killed on a combat flight during Operation Aphrodite | ||
India | 2011 | Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh | Eurocopter | Lobotang, Arunachal Pradesh, India | Poor Condition of the Helicopter. | ||
United States | 1958 | Korean War ace pilot and test pilot | Lockheed F-104 Starfighter | Edwards Air Force Base | |||
Australia | 1935 | Aviator | Lockheed Altair | Andaman Sea | Disappeared during an England to Australia record flight attempt, body never recovered, presumed dead. | ||
United States | 1943 | American football player; winner of the 1939 Heisman Trophy | Grumman F4F Wildcat | Caribbean | Training accident | ||
United States | 1933 | Aviator | Gee Bee Model Y Senior Sportster | National Air Races, Chicago, Illinois | Parachute fouled in fuselage during bail out after plane started breaking up. | ||
United States | 2020 | Alaska State Representative | Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser | Kenai Peninsula, Alaska | Collision with de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver, cause attributed to both pilots filing to comply with the see and avoid rule; see 2020 Kenai Peninsula mid-air collision | ||
West Germany | 1962 | Youngest female national speedboat champion and world-record holder | Piaggio P.166 | Mt. Oberalpstock / Swiss Alps | hit mountain after loss of altitude due to heavy accumulation of ice[59] | ||
Japan | 1944 | Admiral, Commander-in-Chief of Combined Fleet | Kawanishi H8K | Philippine Sea between Davao and Palau | Aircraft disappeared in typhoon | ||
Greece | 1999 | Diplomat and politician | Dassault Falcon 900 | Romania | |||
Austria | 1948 | Gliding champion and test pilot | General Aircraft GAL.56 | Hampshire, England, United Kingdom | aircraft failed to recover from inverted dive during stall tests, observer bailed out at low altitude but pilot was unable to exit aircraft | ||
United States | 1993 | NASCAR driver | Fairchild Merlin IIIC | Tri-Cities Regional Airport, Blountville, Tennessee | Engine failure due to ice accumulation[60] | ||
United States | 1975 | ABA basketball player | Eastern Air Lines Flight 66 | John F. Kennedy International Airport, Queens, New York | Windshear | ||
United States | 1998 | Chef, son of Jake LaMotta | Swissair Flight 111 | Atlantic Ocean southwest of Halifax International Airport, Nova Scotia, Canada | In-flight fire caused by faulty wiring of entertainment system | ||
France | 1928 | Aviator, test pilot | Couzinet 27/10 | France | aircraft failure | ||
Netherlands | 2014 | President of the International AIDS Society | Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 | Hrabove, Ukraine | Airliner shootdown[61] [62] [63] | ||
United States | 2021 | Author, dietitian and church founder | Cessna Citation I/SP | Percy Priest Lake, Tennessee | Loss of control in low visibility; husband Joe Lara also died in this accident; see 2021 Percy Priest Lake Cessna 501 Citation I/SP crash | ||
United States | 2021 | Actor, martial artist and musician | Cessna Citation I/SP | Percy Priest Lake, Tennessee | Loss of control in low visibility; wife Gwen Shamblin Lara also died in this accident; see 2021 Percy Priest Lake Cessna 501 Citation I/SP crash | ||
France | 1909 | First person to die while piloting a powered airplane and the second person to be killed in an airplane crash | Wright Model A | Port-Aviation (Juvisy), France | Crashed from 20 feet | ||
France | 1919 | First woman to earn a pilot's license | experimental Caudron | Le Crotoy, France | |||
Norway | 2015 | Diplomat | Mil Mi-17 | Naltar Valley, Pakistan | loss of control due to mechanical failure | ||
Ecuador | 2007 | Defence minister of Ecuador | Aérospatiale Gazelle | Manta Air Base, Ecuador | collision with another Gazelle during a night training flight | ||
Russia | 2002 | Presidential candidate, governor of Krasnoyarsk | Mil Mi-8 | Yermakovsky District, Russia | pilot error, foggy weather | ||
United States | 1989 | US Congressman from Texas | de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter | Gambela Region, Ethiopia[64] | |||
United States | 1966 | Champion golfer | Beechcraft Twin Bonanza | near Munster, Indiana | fuel starvation | ||
France | 1911 | Aviator | Bleriot XI | Paris, France | Crashed on 18 June 1911 in Paris to London air race. | ||
France | 1913 | Aviator | Bleriot XI | Barbezieux-Saint-Hilaire aerodrome | Crashed on 10 December 1913 in Paris-Bordeaux-Paris air race | ||
United States | 2007 | Stunt performer Bulldog Airshows | Pitts Special | Dayton International Airport | Failed recovery during airshow maneuver | ||
United States | 2001 | Founder and CTO of Akamai | American Airlines Flight 11 | World Trade Center North Tower, New York City | Stabbed during hijacking | ||
United States | 2006 | Major League Baseball player | Cirrus SR20 | New York City | pilot error; Controlled flight into terrain | ||
Germany | 1896 | Glider pioneer | Lilienthal Normalsegelapparat | Stölln, Havelland, Brandenburg, Germany | wing stall | ||
Lin Biao | China | 1971 | Military commander | Hawker Siddeley Trident | Öndörkhaan, Mongolia | fleeing a coup attempt | |
Sweden | 1936 | Former Prime Minister of Sweden | KLM Douglas DC-2 | Croydon Air Port, South London | aircraft hit house after taking off in fog; Juan de la Cierva also killed | ||
United States | 1976 | U.S. Representative from Missouri | Beechcraft Baron | Chillicothe, Missouri | Engine failure during takeoff | ||
United States | 1920 | Aerobatic and stunt performer | Curtiss "Jenny"[65] | Los Angeles, California | during filming of The Skywayman | ||
United States | 1942 | Actress | TWA Flight 3 Douglas DC-3 | Mount Potosi, Nevada, United States | Controlled flight into terrain | ||
Belgium | 1928 | Entrepreneur and financier | Fokker F.VII | Fell from his plane over the English Channel | |||
Philippines | 2015 | Diplomat | Mil Mi-17 | Naltar Valley, Pakistan | loss of control due to mechanical failure | ||
Sweden | 1931 | Aviator | Svenska Aero Jaktfalken | Malmslätt, Sweden | test flight | ||
United States | 1940 | US Senator from Minnesota | Pennsylvania Central Airlines Flight 19 | Lovettsville, Virginia | lightning strike | ||
United States | 1996 | Real estate agent & sex offender activist | TWA Flight 800 | Atlantic Ocean near East Moriches, New York | mid-air explosion | ||
United States | 2006 | Eerobatic pilot and flight instructor | Extra EA-300 | Culpeper Regional Airport, Culpeper, Virginia | Disorientation while performing an aerobatic maneuver, which resulted in the airplane's inadvertent impact with the ground. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's overuse of prescription medication.[66] | ||
Nigeria | 2006 | The 19th Sultan of Sokoto | ADC Airlines Flight 53 | Abuja, Nigeria | cause disputed | ||
Mozambique | 1986 | President of Mozambique | Tupolev Tu-134 | Mbuzini, Lebombo Mountains, South Africa | Controlled flight into terrain during an instrument approach[67] | ||
United Kingdom | 1928 | Socialite and Trans-Atlantic pioneer | Stinson Detroiter | Mid-Atlantic | Disappeared without trace over the Atlantic[68] | ||
Spain | 2010 | Stunt pilot, Red Bull Air Race competitor | Edge 540[69] | Casarrubios del Monte, Province of Toledo | Crashed into the ground during stunt routine[70] | ||
Japan | 1976 | Erotic film actor | Piper Cherokee | Setagaya, Tokyo | Controlled flight into terrain into a house during a kamikaze attack | ||
United States | 1941 | Aviator and poet | Supermarine Spitfire V AD291 | Roxholm, England | collision with an Airspeed Oxford | ||
Philippines | 1957 | President of the Philippines | Presidential plane crash, "Mt. Pinatubo" | Mount Manunggal, Cebu, Philippines | |||
United States | 1998 | AIDS researcher and WHO official | Swissair Flight 111 | Atlantic Ocean southwest of Halifax International Airport, Nova Scotia, Canada | In-flight fire caused by faulty wiring of entertainment system | ||
United States | 1965 | Racing and stunt pilot | Phoenix P-1 | Winterhaven, California | during filming of The Flight of the Phoenix | ||
United States | 1969 | Former world boxing champion | Cessna 172 | Newton, Iowa | not qualified to fly on instruments | ||
France | 2014 | CEO of Total S.A. | Dassault Falcon 50 | Moscow, Russia | Collided on take-off with a snow plow that had strayed onto the runway | ||
United States | 1987 | Actor, singer and son of Dean Martin | McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II | San Bernardino Mountains. California | During maneuvers with his Air Force Reserve unit | ||
Mexico | 1995 | Orchestra conductor and composer. | Piper Aerostar | Toluca, Mexico | Aircraft crashed after entering a stall while attempting emergency landing[71] | ||
Italy | 1962 | President of Eni | Morane-Saulnier MS.760 Paris | Bascapè, Italy | Crashed during stormy weather on approach to the Linate Airport. Unsubstantiated reports of a bomb explosion.[72] | ||
United States | 1954 | Korean War ace pilot | F-86H Sabre | Edwards Air Force Base | control malfunction attributed to a missing bolt | ||
United Kingdom | 1918 | World War I fighter ace | Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5a | Auxi-le-Château, France | Engine malfunction on takeoff | ||
United States | 1983 | Congressman from Georgia | Korean Air Lines Flight 007 | Near Moneron Island, Soviet Union | Shot down by Soviet air force | ||
United States | 1918 | Aviator | Gallaudette Hydroplane | Greenwich Bay | Pontoon dipped into the water, causing his plane to topple into the water where he drowned.[73] | ||
United Kingdom | 2007 | Scottish rally driver | Eurocopter AS350 | Lanark, Scotland | Pilot error[74] [75] | ||
Brazil | 2021 | Singer | 2021 Piedade de Caratinga Beechcraft King Air crash | Piedade de Caratinga, Brazil | Under investigation | ||
United States | 1980 | Ethnomusicologist | LOT Polish Airlines Flight 007 | Warsaw, Poland | loss of control due to fire caused by disintegrating turbine disc | ||
United States | 1977 | Actress, Playboy centerfold June 1955 | Tenerife disaster
| Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain | runway collision | ||
United States | 1993 | Governor of South Dakota | Mitsubishi MU-2B-60 | Dubuque, Iowa | metal fatigue of propeller hub caused by improper design and manufacturing[76] | ||
United States | 1944 | Musician, Big Band leader | Noorduyn Norseman | English Channel | disappeared, body never recovered, presumed dead | ||
Italy | 2013 | CEO of Missoni | Britten-Norman Islander | Los Roques, Venezuela | Unknown, under investigation | ||
United States | 1918 | Former Mayor of New York City | Thomas-Morse S-4[77] | Lake Charles, Louisiana | Fell from airplane from not wearing a seatbelt; namesake of the former Mitchel Air Force Base. | ||
United States | 1933 | U.S. Navy rear admiral | Atlantic Ocean off New Jersey | Dirigible crashed and sank in storm | |||
Spain | 1937 | Nationalist General | Airspeed Envoy | Spain | Flew into mountain | ||
Germany | 1941 | Leading Luftwaffe fighter ace | Heinkel He 111 | Breslau, Germany | Passenger aboard aircraft that crashed while landing in thunderstorm | ||
United States | 1947 | Opera singer | Douglas DC-3 | Kastrup, Denmark | locked elevator, pilot error | ||
Spain | 1939 | Top fighter ace of Spanish Civil War | Fiat CR.32 | Spain | Crashed during low-level aerobatic demonstration for newsreel cameras | ||
United Kingdom | 2001 | Racing car engineer and co-founder of Ilmor Engineering | Hawker Sea Fury | Sywell | overturned on landing | ||
United States | 1964 | Former Mayor of New Orleans | Piper PA-23 Registration: N5211Y | Ciudad Victoria, Mexico | |||
United States | 1982 | Actor | Bell UH-1 Iroquois[78] | Ventura County, California, between Santa Clarita and Piru | Helicopter crashed on top of him after special effects explosion damaged its tail rotor during filming of | ||
Mexico | 2008 | Secretary of the Interior (Mexico) | Learjet 45 | Mexico City, Mexico | |||
France | 2015 | Swimmer; Olympic gold medalist | Eurocopter AS350 | Villa Castelli, Argentina | collided in mid-air; see Villa Castelli helicopter collision | ||
Kuniko Mukoda | Japan | 1981 | Writer, mainly television drama | Far Eastern Air Transport Flight 103 | 94 miles (151 km) south of Taipei, Taiwan | Fuselage structure failure caused by corrosion | |
United States | 1979 | Major League Baseball player | Cessna Citation I/SP | Akron, Ohio | Pilot error | ||
United States | 1971 | Medal of Honor recipient and actor | Aero Commander 680 | Catawba, Virginia | Controlled flight into terrain – Flew into clouds while using visual flight rules.[79] | ||
Turkey | 2009 | Harpist | Air France Flight 447 | Atlantic Ocean | controlled stalled flight into sea at night due to icing leading to pilot error | ||
United States | 1985 | Actor and singer | Douglas DC-3 | De Kalb, Texas | Crashed into trees and utility poles during emergency landing attempt prompted by dense cabin smoke of undetermined origin[80] [81] | ||
Denmark | 1947 | Singer and actress | Douglas DC-3 | Kastrup, Denmark | Locked elevator, pilot error | ||
France | 1949 | Classical violinist | Lockheed Constellation | São Miguel Island, Azores, Portugal | Controlled flight into terrain mountain | ||
United States | 1916 | Pioneer aviator | Moisant monoplane | Fairgrounds Oshkosh, Wisconsin | Crashed while performing a loop 25 June 1916; died of injuries 26 June 1916[82] | ||
United States | 1937 | Pioneering flight navigator | Lockheed Model 10 Electra | Pacific Ocean, near Howland Island | Disappeared together with pilot Amelia Earhart during global circumnavigation attempt, cause undetermined, body and aircraft never found; see speculation on Earhart's disappearance | ||
Canada | 1984 | Politician, leader of the opposition in Alberta | Piper Navajo Chieftain | High Prairie, Alberta, Canada | |||
Burundi | 1994 | President of Burundi | Dassault Falcon 50 | Kigali, Rwanda | Aircraft shot down by unknown assassins
| ||
United States | 1982 | Minister and Christian comedian | Beechcraft Baron 55 | Cullman, Alabama | cause of crash undetermined, weather (fog and rain) considered factors | ||
United States | 1962 | Governor of Montana | Douglas C-47 Skytrain[83] | Wolf Creek, Montana | crashed during snow storm | ||
France | 1927 | World War I flying ace | Levasseur PL.8 | North Atlantic Ocean | Disappeared, body never recovered, presumed dead | ||
Indonesia | 2005 | Governor of North Sumatra | Mandala Airlines Flight 091 | Medan, Indonesia | crashed upon takeoff | ||
United States | 2001 | Lawyer and commentator | American Airlines Flight 77 | The Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia | hijacking by Hani Hanjour | ||
United States | 1985 | Military general, commander of U.S. Air Force Tactical Air Command | North American CT-39A Sabreliner | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport, Pennsylvania | runway overrun caused by faulty brakes[84] [85] | ||
Guatemala | 2014 | Military officer, head of the military | Bell 206 | El Aguacate, Nentón, Huehuetenango Department | |||
Mexico | 1969 | Tennis player | Mexicana de Aviación Flight 704 | Salinas Victoria, Mexico | hit mountain during approach to land | ||
Venezuela | 1978 | TV producer and entertainer | Cessna 310[86] | Maiquetía, Venezuela | disappeared, was a presidential candidate at the time. | ||
United States | 1996 | NASA astronaut, test pilot | Cirrus VK-30 | Duluth, Minnesota, United States | wing stall during full-flap stall testing | ||
Brazil | 1977 | Formula One driver | Piper | Mairiporã | Controlled flight into terrain, weather-related | ||
Korea | 1933 | One of earliest Korean female aviators | Salmson 2A2[87] | Hakone, Japan | fog | ||
United States | 1979 | Film director | small private plane | Nairobi, Kenya | Crashed after takeoff. | ||
Canada | 1986 | Politician | DeHavilland Beaver | near Dease Lake, British Columbia | passenger in float-equipped DHC Beaver that crashed in lake during attempt to land in glassy water conditions | ||
Brazil – Belgium | 2009 | Third in succession to the now extinct throne of Brazil | Air France Flight 447 | Atlantic Ocean | Pitot tube icing; pilots, confused by inconsistent air data, stalled the aircraft | ||
Sweden | 1989 | Former Mayor of Stockholm | Beechcraft Model 99[88] | Oskarshamn, Sweden | (crash info in Swedish) | ||
Romania | 2021 | Romanian businessman and billionaire, one of the richest persons in Romania at the time | Pilatus PC-12 | Milan, Italy | 2021 Milan airplane crash | ||
Russia | 2011 | Russian international football referee | RusAir Flight 9605 | Republic of Karelia, Russia | Controlled flight into terrain | ||
Edward Petre[89] | United Kingdom | 1912 | Aviation pioneer | Handasyde monoplane | Marske-by-the-Sea | Gale caused crash while attempting emergency landing on route to Edinburgh on test flight | |
United States | 1975 | Representative from California | Beech Bonanza | Banning, California | Flew into obscured pass at low altitude. | ||
France | 1785 | Hot air ballooning pioneer | Hot air balloon | Wimille | Crashed in an attempt to fly across the English Channel | ||
United Kingdom | 1899 | Inventor and aviation pioneer | Glider The Hawk | Market Harborough, Leicestershire, England | Structural failure; tail detached from glider | ||
Chile | 2024 | Former President of Chile | Robinson R44 | Lake Ranco | Crashed into lake | ||
France | 2002 | Baker and entrepreneur | Agusta A109 | off Cancale | crashed in sea during attempt to land on island off the coast in fog | ||
United States | 1935 | Aviation pioneer | Modified Lockheed Model 9 Orion | Walakpa Bay near Barrow, Alaska | engine failure; killed in the same crash as Will Rogers | ||
United States | 1977 | 1960 U-2 incident pilot | Modified Bell 206 Jet-Ranger (KNBC News Helicopter) | Los Angeles, CA | pilot error and fuel starvation | ||
Canada | 2016 | Former Premier of Alberta | Cessna Citation | Lake Country, British Columbia, Canada | Aircraft crashed shortly after take-off[90] | ||
Russia | 2023 | Russian oligarch and founder of Wagner Group | Embraer Legacy 600 | Kuzhenkino, Tver Oblast, Russia | Under Investigation | ||
United Kingdom | 1985 | Formula One driver | Pitts Special | The sea off Bognor Regis, West Sussex, England | |||
West Germany | 1967 | Industrialist | Beechcraft King Air[91] | Italy | |||
Brazil | 1982 | Entrepreneur | VASP Flight 168 | Serra da Aratanha, near Pacatuba, Ceará, Brazil | |||
United States | 1912 | First licensed female pilot in the U.S. | Blériot two seater[92] | Squantum, Massachusetts | Fell from airplane from not wearing a seatbelt | ||
Germany | 2015 | Contralto singer | Germanwings Flight 9525 | Prads-Haute-Bléone, France | deliberate flight into terrain | ||
United States | 1942 | Composer and songwriter | Douglas DC-3 – American Airlines Flight 28 | Chino Canyon, Riverside County, California, United States | mid-air collision | ||
Iran | 2024 | President of Iran | Bell 212 | Varzaqan, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran | See: 2024 Varzaqan helicopter crash | ||
India | 2009 | Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, India | Bell 430 | Nallamala, India | |||
Uruguay | 1983 | Writer, academic, and literary critic | Avianca Flight 011, Boeing 747 | near Madrid, Spain | Controlled flight into terrain | ||
India | 2021 | Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of the Indian Armed Forces | Mil Mi-17[93] | Coonoor taluk, Nilgiris district. | 2021 Indian Air Force Mil Mi-17 crash | ||
United States | 1967 | Singer-songwriter | Beechcraft Model 18 | Lake Monona, Madison, Wisconsin, United States | |||
United States | 1964 | Country music singer | Beechcraft Debonair | Brentwood, Tennessee, United States | |||
United States | 1980 | LSU Tigers college football coach | Cessna 441 | Atlantic Ocean near Norfolk, Virginia | Plane veered well off course, ran out of fuel and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean. Speculated loss of cabin pressure incapacitated Rein and pilot Lewis F. Benscotter. | ||
United States | 1972 | Entrepreneur and racecar driver | Cessna 206 | Aspen, Colorado | attempted to fly into a blind canyon and stalled the aircraft while trying to turn around.[94] | ||
United States | 1982 | Guitarist with Ozzy Osbourne | Beechcraft Model 35 Bonanza | Leesburg, Florida | crashed after wing clipped Ozzy Osbourne's tour bus during ultra-low-level fly-by | ||
United States | 1959 | Singer, songwriter, disc jockey | Beechcraft Bonanza | Clear Lake, IA | Pilot error (continued VFR into IMC); Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens also died in this accident (see The Day the Music Died). | ||
United Kingdom | 1930 | Airship designer | Royal Airship Works R101 | Beauvais, France | damage to fabric covering in bad weather leading to loss of gas and lift causing gentle descent into ground followed by fire and explosion | ||
United States | 1957 | Test pilot | Douglas C-47 | Tokyo, Japan | crashed into a snow-covered mountainside | ||
United States | 2012 | Singer | Learjet 25 N345MC | Near Iturbide, Nuevo Leon, Mexico | Mechanical failure | ||
United States | 1956 | President of Consolidated Steel, Columbia Steel, Geneva Steel | Lockheed Lodestar 18-56, N 1234V | Tyrone, Pennsylvania | unknown cause. captain, co-pilot, 1 passenger, all died.[95] | ||
United States | 1943 | Aviator, co-founder of Lambert Field and Robertson Aircraft Corporation, Missouri Air National Guard commander | Waco CG-4A-RO | Lambert Field, St. Louis, Missouri, United States | Loss of right-hand wing due to wing strut fitting failure during demonstration flight; St. Louis mayor William D. Becker also dies in this accident | ||
Philippines | 2012 | Secretary of the Interior and Local Government | Piper PA-34 Seneca | Waters near Masbate, Philippines | Engine failure | ||
Norway | 1931 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish football coach | Transcontinental & Western Air Fokker F-10 | Bazaar, Kansas, United States | structure failure of wing | ||
United States | 1912 | Aviator, made the first transcontinental airplane flight across the U.S. | Wright "Vin Fiz Flyer" | Long Beach, California | Bird strike over water | ||
Canada | 1983 | Singer | Air Canada Flight 797 | Boone County, KY | In-flight fire. Made emergency landing in Cincinnati Airport. | ||
United States | 1935 | Actor, humorist, singer | Modified Lockheed Model 9 Orion | Walakpa Bay near Barrow, Alaska | Engine failure; killed in same crash as Wiley Post | ||
Ecuador | 1981 | President of Ecuador | Beechcraft Super King Air | Ecuador | flew into mountain | ||
United Kingdom | 1910 | Co-founder of Rolls-Royce Motors | Modified Short-Wright Flyer | Bournemouth, England | tail structural failure. | ||
United States | 1982 | Christian evangelist, operator of teenage homes | Cessna 210 | near Normangee, Texas | crash likely due to thunderstorm activity in the area | ||
Sweden | 1996 | Miss Universe 1955, national decathlon | Beechcraft Musketeer C-23[96] | California, United States | engine failure caused by improper maintenance | ||
United States | 1991 | First female combat commander (US) | Boeing CH-47 Chinook | Northern Saudi Arabia | collision with microwave tower | ||
France | 1954 | World War II ace and test pilot | Dassault Mystère IV | Melun, France | electrical problems | ||
Austria-Hungary | 1911 | First Slovene aviator, aircraft constructor | Mercep-Rusjan monoplane [97] | Belgrade, Serbia | Structural failure of the wing due to windy conditions. | ||
United Kingdom | 1937 | Record-setting aviator, Duchess of Bedford | De Havilland DH.60 Moth Major | North Sea, off Great Yarmouth, England | body never recovered | ||
France | 1986 | Paris-Dakar rally founder | Aérospatiale AS350 Ecureuil | Mali | Controlled flight into terrain during a sandstorm, with Daniel Balavoine | ||
Portugal | 1980 | Prime Minister of Portugal | Cessna 421 | Camarate, Loures, district of Lisbon, Portugal | sabotage | ||
Sudan | 2012 | Guidance and Endowments minister | Antonov An-26 | Nuba Mountains south Talodi, South Kordofan, Sudan | Controlled flight into terrain due to heavy rain; see 2012 Sudan Antonov An-26 crash | ||
Kenya | 2012 | Politician and Internal Security Minister | 2012 Kenya Police helicopter crash (Eurocopter AS350 Écureuil) | Near Nairobi, Kenya | [98] Crew lost control of the helicopter in conditions of poor visibility | ||
Japan | 1985 | Singer | Japan Airlines Flight 123 | Mount Osutaka, Japan | maintenance error leading to structural failure and hydraulic fluid loss with loss of control | ||
Argentina | 2019 | Professional footballer | 2019 Piper PA-46 Malibu crash | Off Guernsey, Channel Islands | under investigation[99] | ||
United States | 1945 | U.S. Navy rear admiral | Martin PBM Mariner | near Wakayama, Japan | wreckage and bodies not found for more than 37 months after crash | ||
Spain | 1936 | General/Coup Leader/Aspiring Dictator | Small Biplane | Estoril, Portugal | Overloaded Cargo | ||
Mexico | 2006 | Actor | Piper PA-46 | Toluca, Mexico | |||
United States | 1916 | U.S. Navy aviation pioneer, altitude and endurance record holder | Curtiss Model E | Santa Rosa Island, Florida | Crashed at 8-hour-51-minute mark of attempt to break own flight endurance record | ||
Germany | 1935 | Bavarian minister of education | Heinkel sport model | Beyreuth, Germany | crashed into aerodrome roof when landing | ||
United States | 1940 | Transcontinental record holder | Piper J-3 | Floyd Bennett Field, New York | mid-air collision | ||
United States | 1985 | Aerobatic and stunt performer | Pitts Special | Near Carlsbad, California | Failed to recover from inverted spin during filming of Top Gun[100] | ||
United States | 1967 | Musician | helicopter | Da Nang, Vietnam | pilot error | ||
India | 2001 | Politician | Cessna C-90 | Bhogaon, India | Engine fire | ||
United States | 1966 | Astronaut | Northrop T-38 Talon | St. Louis, Missouri | with Charles Bassett; 1966 NASA T-38 crash | ||
France | 1944 | Writer and aviator | Lockheed F-5 Lightning | Mediterranean Sea south of Marseille | Crashed at sea, cause undetermined; refer to main article | ||
United States | 1908 | First powered-airplane fatality. First military-aviation fatality. First passenger fatality. Namesake of Selfridge Field. | Wright Model A | Fort Myer, Arlington County, Virginia | Right propeller failure. U.S. Army Signal Corp contract acceptance trial flight piloted by Orville Wright, who was seriously injured.[101] [102] | ||
United States | 1954 | Three-time Indianapolis 500 winner | Cessna | Decatur, Indiana | weather | ||
South Korea | 1997 | Four-term lawmaker and parliamentary leader | Korean Air Flight 801[103] [104] | Nimitz Hill, Guam | Improperly navigated approach | ||
United States | 1985 | Playwright | Beechcraft Model 99 | Grottoes Grove, Virginia | hit mountain during approach to land | ||
United Kingdom | 1940 | Racing driver, aviator and collector | Fairey Battle | Near RAF Benson, Oxfordshire, England | Flew into hill during solo night flying exercise | ||
Poland | 1943 | Prime Minister of Poland | Consolidated Liberator II | Sea near Gibraltar | night take-off and pilot – only survivor – states elevator jammed, unable to climb. aircraft hit water and sank | ||
India | 1952 | Maharajah of Jodhpur | Beechcraft Bonanza | India | |||
United States | 1989 | US Congressman from Mississippi | Cessna 177RG | Janice, Mississippi | In flight loss of control by the Non-Instrument rated pilot after encountering Instrument meteorological conditions resulting in the airplane spiraling into a wooded area.[105] | ||
United States | 1926 | Aviator | Curtiss Carrier Pigeon[106] | Montpelier, Ohio | [107] | ||
United States | 1985 | Young activist | Bar Harbor Airlines Flight 1808 | Auburn, Maine | Improper execution of instrument approach; failed to initiate timely go-around[108] | ||
United States | 1973 | Land art artist | Beechcraft Baron | Amarillo, Texas | pilot error | ||
United States | 1947 | Governor of Oregon | Beech Bonanza | Lakeview, Oregon | weather | ||
India | 2004 | Kannada film actress, Kannada and Tamil actress | Cessna 180 | Bangalore, India | aircraft crashed after takeoff | ||
Thailand | 2018 | Billionaire businessman, owner of Premier League football club Leicester City | 2018 Leicester helicopter crash | Leicester, East Midlands, UK | Loss of yaw control owing to a failure of the tail rotor control linkage[109] | ||
United States | 2019 | NASCAR Driver | Aero Ultra-Light | Sterling, Connecticut | Engine failure leading to loss of power while attempting to land[110] | ||
Czechoslovakia | 1919 | Czechoslovak politician and French general | Caproni Ca.3 | Ivanka pri Dunaji near Bratislava Airport, Czechoslovakia (now Slovakia) | unclear, probably wind shear | ||
United States | 1950 | United States Ambassador to Canada | Douglas C-47 Skytrain | Ramsayville near Ottawa, Ontario, Canada | |||
United States | 2010 | Former U.S. Senator | de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter (DHC-3T turbine conversion) | Dillingham, Alaska | Cause undetermined. Former NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe survived this crash. | ||
United States | 1999 | Champion golfer | Learjet 35 | Mina, SD (crash site). Location at time of death undetermined. | Hypoxia
| ||
United States | 1966 | Brigiadier-General United States Army | Douglas C-47 Skytrain | Pacific Ocean en route San Francisco – Honolulu | Body never recovered, presumed dead. Aircraft failed to arrive in Honolulu | ||
Australia | 2001 | Singer, Skyhooks | Bell 47 | near Kilcoy, Queensland | flew into mountain in turbulence[111] | ||
Sweden | 1963 | Actor | Cessna Skywagon[112] | Trinidad and Tobago | |||
United States | 1981 | Singer, songwriter, comedian | Fairchild PT-19 | Carrabassett Valley, Maine | Incapacitation – Pilot suffered heart attack during takeoff phase of flight[113] | ||
United States | 2014 | Record attempt to become the youngest pilot to fly around the world in 30 days | Beechcraft A36 Bonanza | Pacific Ocean, near Pago Pago | Crashing in the sea.[114] | ||
United States | 1928 | US Congressman from New York | Curtiss O-1B Falcon[115] [116] | Whitney Point, New York | |||
United Kingdom | 1958 | Goalkeeper, Manchester City and England, journalist | Airspeed Ambassador | Munich-Riem Airport, Germany | Munich air disaster caused by slushy runway conditions | ||
Peru | 1983 | Author | Aviaco Flight 134 | Madrid, Spain | Collision resulting from runway incursion, caused by poor visibility and taxiway signage | ||
Japan | 1987 | Professional wrestler | South African Airways Flight 295 | Mauritius | Fire developed in the cargo section on the main deck which was probably not extinguished before crashing into the Indian Ocean. His wife was also killed in the crash. | ||
United States | 1978 | Stuntman | Piper PA-23 Aztec | Trabuco Canyon, California | Controlled flight into terrain – Continued VFR into IMC[117] | ||
India | 1986 | Palynologist | Pan Am Flight 73 | Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan | Murdered on the ground by terrorists who hijacked the plane | ||
France | 1953 | Classical violinist | Lockheed Constellation | Nice, France | Controlled flight into terrain | ||
United Kingdom | 1930 | British Secretary of State for Air | R101 disaster | Beauvais, France | Weather-related | ||
United Kingdom | 1967 | English actress | Iberia Airlines Flight 062 (Sud Caravelle) | Blackdown, Sussex, England | Controlled flight into terrain | ||
United States | 2001 | Singer, member of La Bouche | Crossair Flight 3597 | Bassersdorf, Switzerland | Deliberate descent below minimum descent altitude (Decision Height) without having the required visual contact to the approach lights or the runway.[118] | ||
Sweden | 1919 | Aeronautics industry leader, founder of AB Thulinverken | Thulin K[119] | Landskrona, Sweden | Structural failure | ||
Argentina | 1983 | Author | Aviaco Flight 134 | Madrid, Spain | Collision resulting from runway incursion, caused by poor visibility and taxiway signage | ||
United States | 1928 | Aviator and engineer | Travel Air | Snyders, Pennsylvania, United States | Flew into mountain in bad weather | ||
United States | 1958 | Film producer | Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar | Grants, New Mexico | Icing | ||
Germany | 1942 | Nazi official | Heinkel He 111[120] | Rastenburg, Germany | Crashed after take-off | ||
United States | 1970 | Marshall University football head coach | Southern Airways Flight 932 | Huntington, West Virginia | Descent below Minimum Descent Altitude during a nonprecision approach under adverse operating conditions, without visual contact with the runway environment.[121] | ||
United States | 2006 | Former game show host, Press Your Luck | Beechcraft A36 Bonanza | Santa Monica Bay | engine failure after takeoff, due to maintenance error | ||
Panama | 1981 | Presiden of the Panamanian Revolution | de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter | Marta Hill, Coclesito, near Coclé province, Panama | Panamanian Air Force FAP-205 crash | ||
United States | 1991 | Former US Senator from Texas | Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 2311 | Brunswick, GA | Malfunction of the left engine propeller control unit. | ||
Macedonia | 2004 | President of the Republic of Macedonia | Beechcraft 200 Super King Air | near Mostar | aircraft flew into mountain during approach to land in poor weather | ||
United States | 1950 | Brigadier general, U.S. Air Force | USAF Boeing B-29 Superfortress | Fairfield-Suisun Air Force Base, Fairfield, California | Attempted emergency landing due to runaway propellers and landing gear problems; see 1950 Fairfield-Suisun Boeing B-29 crash | ||
Russia | 2008 | Military commander | Boeing 737 | Perm, Russia | pilot error, see Aeroflot Flight 821 | ||
United States | 1970 | NASCAR driver | Aero Commander 500 Registration: N701X | Mahaffey, Pennsylvania | Engine failure on approach resulted in spin and subsequent crash; pilot impairment due to alcohol ingestion[122] | ||
Australia | 1934 | Air pioneer, made the first trans-Pacific flight from the United States to Australia | Airspeed Envoy | Pacific Ocean | Disappeared, body never recovered, presumed dead. Was flying between mainland United States and Hawaii during US-Australia record flight attempt. | ||
Russia | 2023 | Military officer and founder of Wagner Group | Embraer Legacy 600 | Kuzhenkino, Tver Oblast, Russia | Under Investigation | ||
United States | 1959 | Singer | Beechcraft Bonanza | Clear Lake, IA | Pilot error (Continued VFR into IMC); Buddy Holly and J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson also died in this accident (see The Day the Music Died). | ||
United States | 1987 | NBA player for the Phoenix Suns | Northwest Airlines Flight 255 | Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport | Flightcrew failed to deploy flaps/slats prior to takeoff resulting in stall[123] | ||
France | 2015 | Boxer | Eurocopter AS350 | Villa Castelli, Argentina | collided in mid-air; see Villa Castelli helicopter collision | ||
United States | 1990 | Guitarist and singer | Bell 206B JetRanger (N16933) | East Troy, Wisconsin | impact with hillside during fog/inclement weather[124] | ||
India | 1942 | Pioneer of early Indian aviation | Lockheed Hudson (AM946) | English Channel | Missing on a flight from Portreath, Cornwall to Gibraltar, presumed enemy action. | ||
Romania | 1913 | Engineer, inventor, airplane constructor and early pilot | Vlaicu-2 | Câmpina, Romania | in attempt to be the first to fly across the Carpathian Mountains | ||
Germany | 1922 | World War One ace pilot | LVG C.VI | Fuhlsbüttel, Germany | |||
Germany | 1933 | German lawyer and judge | Lufthansa | Fuhlsbüttel, Germany | collided with signal tower when landing in dense fog | ||
United States | 1966 | Test pilot | Lockheed F-104 Starfighter | Barstow, California | Collided with North American XB-70 Valkyrie in a tight group formation for a publicity photo | ||
United States | 2005 | Son of Walmart founder Sam Walton | CGS Hawk Arrow | Jackson Hole, Wyoming | control failure due to maintenance error | ||
United States | 1954 | World War II Pearl Harbor pilot and test pilot | North American F-100 Super Sabre | Edwards AFB | demonstration flight | ||
United States | 2002 | US Senator from Minnesota | Beechcraft A100 King Air | Eveleth, Minnesota | aircraft stalled and crashed during approach to land in snow | ||
United Kingdom | 1948 | 8th Earl FitzWilliam | de Havilland Dove | France | |||
United States | 1938 | Major General, Chief of the United States Army Air Corps | Northrop A-17AS | Burbank, California | aircraft crashed in crosswind short of runway on landing approach | ||
Germany | 1936 | Generalleutnant, Chief of the Luftwaffe General Staff | Heinkel He 70 | Dresden, Germany | aircraft crashed on takeoff due to maintenance error | ||
United States | 2021 | Racing driver, 24 Hours of Le Mans winner | Swearingen Merlin | near Winslow, Arizona | |||
United Kingdom | 1972 | British royalty, cousin of Elizabeth II | Piper PA-28R Arrow | near Wolverhampton Airport, England | aircraft he was piloting crashed immediately after take-off while he was participating in Goodyear Trophy Air Race[125] [126] | ||
United States | 1982 | Investment banker | Air Florida Flight 90 | Washington, D.C. and Arlington County, Virginia | Atmospheric icing, Pilot error due to poor weather | ||
United Kingdom | 1926 | Welsh airship pioneer | balloon | Hoo Park, Kempston, Bedford, England | |||
United States | 1932 | Actor and stunt pilot | Curtiss Model D (replica) | Cleveland, Ohio | collision with autogyro at Cleveland Air Races | ||
United Kingdom | 1944 | Soldier and founder of the Chindits | North American B-25 Mitchell | India | |||
United States | 1995 | Aircraft designer and builder and air-race pilot | Wittman O&O (Experimental) Registration: N41SW | Stevenson, Alabama | In-flight break-up due to improperly installed wing fabric[127] | ||
[128] | Netherlands | 2014 | Senator, legal scholar and author | Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 | Hrabove, Ukraine | airliner shootdown | |
United States | 2000 | Politician, former New Jersey State Senator | Mitsubishi MU-2B-26A | Edgartown, Massachusetts | failure to follow instrument flight procedures resulting in collision with a tree[129] | ||
United States | 1987 | Former racecar driver and owner and founder of Yenko Chevrolet | Cessna 210 | Charleston, West Virginia | landing error | ||
Italy | 1968 | Businessman and appliance manufacturer | Piaggio PD-808 I-PIAI | San Sebastion, Spain | Controlled flight into terrain in bad weather[130] | ||
Pakistan | 1988 | President of Pakistan | Lockheed C-130 Hercules | near Bahawalpur, Pakistan | sabotage | ||
Russia | 2001 | Fighter pilot and Eastern Bloc defector | Yakovlev Yak-52 | Bellingham, Washington | Aircraft failed to recover from an accelerated stall | ||
Brazil | 2017 | Supreme court judge | Hawker Beechcraft King Air C90 | Paraty, Rio de Janeiro | Under investigation.[131] | ||
Brazil | 2019 | Journalist | Bell 206B | São Paulo, São Paulo | Under investigation.[132] | ||
United States | 2020 | Personal injury attorney | TBM 700 | Pembroke, New York | Unknown[133] [134] |
Name | Nationality | Year | Description of members | Flight/aircraft | Location | Cause/circumstances |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aaliyah | United States | 2001 | Singer Aaliyah and members of her entourage | Cessna 402 | Marsh Harbour Airport, Abaco Islands, The Bahamas | |
Alexandrov Ensemble | Russia | 2016 | Artistic director Valery Khalilov and 63 choir members | Tupolev Tu-154B-2 | Black Sea near Sochi, Russia | Spatial disorientation |
The Blackwood Brothers | United States | 1954 | Baritone singer and pilot R.W. Blackwood and bass singer Bill Lyles | Beechcraft Model 18 | Clanton, Alabama, United States | Aircraft stalled during attempted landing |
China National Opera (Beijing) | China | 1956 | Ten members | Ilyushin Il-12 | Eglisau, Switzerland | 1956 Eglisau Ilyushin Il-12 plane crash |
Jim Croce | United States | 1973 | Others killed in the crash were pilot Robert N. Elliott, Croce's bandmate Maury Muehleisen, comedian George Stevens, manager and booking agent Kenneth D. Cortese, and road manager Dennis Rast. | Beechcraft E18S | Natchitoches, Louisiana | Pilot's failure to see the obstruction due to physical impairment and because fog reduced his vision. |
Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J. P. Richardson | United States | 1959 | All three tourmates were killed, along with pilot Roger Peterson | Beechcraft Bonanza | Clear Lake, Iowa, United States | Controlled flight into terrain |
Bar-Kays, Otis Redding | United States | 1967 | Four of six Bar-Kays members died: Ronnie Caldwell, Phalon Jones, Jimmy King and Carl Cunningham. Ben Cauley survived the crash and James Alexander was not on the plane. Also on board and killed was soul singer Otis Redding. | Beechcraft Model 18 | Lake Monona, Madison, Wisconsin, United States | Cause undetermined |
Chase | United States | 1974 | Four of eight band members were killed (Bill Chase, Walter Clark, John Emma and Wally Yohn) | Piper Twin Comanche | Jackson, Minnesota, United States | Controlled flight into terrain during landing descent[135] |
Keith Green | United States | 1982 | Green was killed along with 10 other passengers - including 2 of his children - and the pilot. | Cessna 414 | Garden Valley, Texas; United States | Plane was determined to be dangerously overloaded; contributing to the crash shortly after takeoff.[136] |
Lynyrd Skynyrd | United States | 1977 | Lead vocalist Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, and back-up singer Cassie Gaines | 1977 Convair 240 crash[137] | Northeast of Gillsburg, Mississippi, United States | Fuel exhaustion |
Reba McEntire's band | United States | 1991 | Guitarist Chris Austin, backup singer Paula Kaye Evans, bassist Terry Jackson, bandleader Kirk Cappello, guitarist Michael Thomas, drummer Tony Saputo, and keyboardist Joey Cigainero | British Aerospace BAe 125 | San Diego, California, United States | Pilot's failure to maintain proper altitude and clearance over mountainous terrain, and the copilot's failure to adequately monitor the progress of the flight[138] |
Mamonas Assassinas | Brazil | 1996 | All five members were killed. | Learjet 25 | Cantareira mountain range, Brazil | Controlled flight into terrain |
Fanfarekorps Koninklijke Nederlandse Landmacht | Netherlands | 1996 | 23 out of 37 band members of the Royal Netherlands Army Fanfare were killed. | Lockheed C-130 Hercules | Eindhoven Airport, Netherlands | Ingested birds in engine during approach; known as Herculesramp |
The Nelons | United States | 2024 | 3 of the 4 members (Kelly Nelon Clark, her husband Jason Clark and their daughter Amber Nelon Kistler) were killed along with 3 other passengers and the pilot. Another daughter, Autumn Nelon Streetman, was not on board. | Pilatus PC-12 | North of Gillette, Wyoming; United States | Under investigation; more in 2024 Gillette Pilatus PC-12 crash |
Passion Fruit | Germany | 2001 | Two of the Eurodance trio died: Maria Serrano Serrano and Nathalie van het Ende. Debby St. Maarten survived the crash. Former lead singer of La Bouche, Melanie Thornton was also killed in this crash. | Crossair Flight 3597 | Bassersdorf, Switzerland | Controlled flight into terrain
|
Name | Nationality | Year | Description of members | Flight/aircraft | Location | Cause/circumstances | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australian Government | Australia | 1940 | 10 fatalities, including cabinet ministers Geoffrey Street, James Fairbairn and Henry Gullett, and senior army officer Brudenell White | Lockheed Hudson | Canberra, Australia | 1940 Canberra air disaster | |
Philippine Government | Philippines | 1957 | 25 fatalities, including President Ramon Magsaysay, Education Secretary Gregorio Hernandez Jr., Senator Tomas Cabili, Congressman Pedro Lopez and Philippine Air Force Commanding General Benito Ebuen | Douglas C-47 Skytrain | Balamban, Philippines | 1957 Cebu Douglas C-47 crash | |
Participants of the 60th National Defence Course | Finland | 1978 | 15 fatalities, including 4 Members of the Parliament, 3 executives of governmental agencies, 3 business executives and 2 military commanders. The future Finnish president Tarja Halonen was not on the flight because she was expecting her baby, and doctor had prohibited her to enter the aircraft (she took a train instead). | Douglas DC-3 | Rissala, Finland | ||
Pakistan–United States delegation | Pakistan | 1988 | 30 fatalities, including President Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Akhtar Abdur Rahman, United States Ambassador to Pakistan Arnold Lewis Raphel, US Brigadier General Herbert M. Wassom, and a group of senior Pakistani army officers. | Lockheed C-130B Hercules | Bahawalpur, Pakistan | 1988 Pakistan Air Force C-130B crash | |
Polish official delegation to the Katyn war cemetery | Poland | 2010 | President Lech Kaczyński; First Lady Maria Kaczyńska; Former president of the Republic of Poland in exile Ryszard Kaczorowski; Senator Janina Fetlińska; Stanisław Komorowski; Andrzej Kremer, Tomasz Merta and others[139] | Tupolev Tu-154M | Smolensk North Airport, Smolensk | Smolensk air disaster |
See also: List of accidents involving sports teams.
Name | Nationality | Year | Description of members | Flight/aircraft | Location | Cause/circumstances | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Peru | 1987 | 43 fatalities, including 16 players (several members of the Peru national football team during that time), Peru coach Marcos Calderon, staff, cheerleaders, and crewmembers, with the exception of one survivor (the plane pilot) | Fokker F27-400M | In the Pacific Ocean, six miles from Ventanilla, Callao, Peru | Malfunctioning indicator, see 1987 Alianza Lima plane crash | ||
Apex Motorsports | United Kingdom | 2008 | Three people total: team manager Richard Lloyd, driver David Leslie and a data engineer. | Farnborough, London | 2008 Farnborough plane crash | ||
Associação Chapecoense de Futebol | Brazil | 2016 | 75 people died in the crash of which 45 were members of the Brazilian Football team Chapecoense except Jakson Follmann, Neto and Alan Ruschel. It is the worst air crash in South America involving a sports team. | Medellín, Colombia | LaMia Airlines Flight 2933 | ||
Czechoslovakia | 1956 | 23 people died on the crash; six people of this ice hockey team: three players (including Miroslav Pašek and Zdeněk Nový), two top club officials and a reporter | 1956 Eglisau Ilyushin Il-12 plane crash | Eglisau, Switzerland | see: 1956 Eglisau Ilyushin Il-12 plane crash | ||
Bulgarian rhythmic gymnastics women's team | Bulgaria | 1978 | Trainer Juliet Shishmanova, Rumyana Stefanova, Valentina Petrova Albena Kirilova, Snezhana Mikhailova and Popova Sevdalina. | 1978 Balkan Bulgarian Tupolev Tu-134 crash | |||
United Kingdom | 1974 | 346 fatalities, including 18 Members of Rugby Team | Turkish Airlines Flight 981 – McDonnell Douglas DC-10 | Ermenonville Forest, France | Decompression after a cargo door failed.[140] | ||
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo | United States | 1960 | 16 members of the college American football team and six others | Curtiss C-46 Commando | Toledo Express Airport | Cal Poly football team plane crash | |
Canadian football Western All-Stars team | Canada | 1956 | Saskatchewan Roughriders players Mel Becket, Mario DeMarco, Gordon Sturtridge and Ray Syrnyk; Winnipeg Blue Bombers player Cal Jones | Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 810 | Mount Slesse, British Columbia | Crashed into mountain, cause undetermined; engine failure and bad weather were possible factors[141] | |
Colourful 11 football team | Netherlands Suriname | 1989 | Fourteen players and a coach: Ruud Degenaar, Lloyd Doesburg, Steve van Dorpel, Wendel Fräser, Frits Goodings, Jerry Haatrecht, Virgall Joemankhan, Andro Knel, Ruben Kogeldans, Ortwin Linger, Fred Patrick, Andy Scharmin, Elfried Veldman, Florian Vijent and Nick Stienstra (coach) | Surinam Airways Flight PY764 | Zanderij airport | Controlled flight into terrain due to pilot error | |
Cuban national fencing team | Cuba | 1976 | All 24 members of the team, trainers and the coach | Cubana Flight 455 | Payne's Bay, Barbados | Bombing | |
Embassy Hill | UK | 1975 | six people total, including former F1 world champion Graham Hill, driver Tony Brise, team manager Ray Brimble, two mechanics and designer Andy Smallman. | Piper Aztec | Arkley | crashed on golf course while attempting to land at nearby Elstree Airfield in fog | |
University of Evansville basketball team | United States | 1977 | 29 players, staff and fans | Douglas DC-3 | |||
Hendrick Motorsports | United States | 2004 | 10 people associated with the team, including family, team crew, and pilots | 2004 Hendrick Motorsports aircraft crash | |||
Iowa State University cross country women's team | United States | 1985 | 7 people associated with the team, including 3 runners, 3 coaches/staff, and pilots | ||||
Russia | 2011 | Near Yaroslavl, Russia | 2011 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane crash | ||||
Manchester United | United Kingdom | 1958 | 23 people total; including eight footballers: Geoff Bent, Roger Byrne, Eddie Colman, Duncan Edwards, Mark Jones, David Pegg, Tommy Taylor, and Billy Whelan; coach Bert Whalley, trainer Tom Curry, and club secretary Walter Crickmer. Also Frank Swift, a former player. | Munich air disaster | |||
Marshall University football team | United States | 1970 | 35 players, eight coaches, and 25 boosters | Southern Airways Flight 932 | |||
Oklahoma State University | United States | 2001 | Ten people associated with men's basketball team (including two players) | Beechcraft Super King Air | |||
Old Christians Club rugby team | Uruguay | 1972 | 24 of 40 team members, basis for 1974 book ; survivors resorted to cannibalism | Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 | |||
FC Pakhtakor Tashkent | Soviet Union | 1979 | 17 players | 1979 Ukraine Aeroflot mid-air collision | |||
Palmas Futebol e Regatas | Brazil | 2021 | Team owner Lucas Meira; four footballers: Marcus Molinari, Guilherme Noé, Lucas Praxedes, and Ranule; and the pilot | Beechcraft Baron | Porto Nacional, Tocantins | ||
Puerto Rico women's national volleyball team | Puerto Rico | 1970 | Most members of the team | Dominicana de Aviación McDonnell Douglas DC-9 | |||
A.C. Torino | Italy | 1949 | 18 players, club officials, and journalists | Superga air disaster | |||
U.S. Olympic boxing team | United States | 1980 | all team members except for Bobby Czyz, Marvis Frazier and Lee Roy Murphy | LOT Polish Airlines Flight 007 | |||
USAC officials | United States | 1978 | 8 lead officials | Piper Navajo | |||
U.S. Figure Skating team | United States | 1961 | all 18 skaters, coaches, and judges | Sabena Flight 548 | Brussels, Belgium | Possible failure of flight controls | |
Wichita State University football team | United States | 1970 | 31 players, coaches and supporters | Martin 4-0-4 | Silver Plume, Colorado | Wichita State University football team plane crash | |
Zambia national football team | Zambia | 1993 | All 18 footballers, including Efford Chabala and Wisdom Mumba Chansa | de Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo | Libreville, Gabon | Gabon air disaster |
140. Full List of Presidents who died in Aviation Accidents and Incidents, Nigeria News 247, May 20 2024.