Date & Time:
Jan 7, 1972 at 1210 LT
Type of aircraft:
Sud-Aviation SE-210 Caravelle
Operator:
Registration:
EC-ATV
Flight Phase:
Landing (descent or approach)
Flight Type:
Scheduled Revenue Flight
Survivors:
No
Site:
Mountains
Schedule:
Madrid - Valencia - Ibiza
MSN:
163
YOM:
1963
Flight number:
IB602
Country:
Spain
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
6
Crew fatalities:
6
Pax on board:
98
Pax fatalities:
98
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
104
Circumstances:
On approach to Ibiza Airport, the crew encountered poor visibility due to foggy conditions and failed to realize his altitude was insufficient. At an excessive speed of 515 km/h, the airplane struck the slope of a hill located between Mt Rocas Altas (365 meters high) and Mt Atalaya de San José (301 meters high). The wreckage was found 8 km northwest of runway 07 threshold, some 30 meters below the summit. The aircraft disintegrated on impact and all 104 occupants were killed.
Crew:
José Luis Ballester Sepúlveda, captain,
Jesús Montesinos Sánchez, copilot,
Vicente Rodríguez Mesa, flight engineer,
Pilar Merino López Baeza, stewardess,
Pilar Miravet Martín, stewardess,
Manuel Fernández Cuesta, steward.
Crew:
José Luis Ballester Sepúlveda, captain,
Jesús Montesinos Sánchez, copilot,
Vicente Rodríguez Mesa, flight engineer,
Pilar Merino López Baeza, stewardess,
Pilar Miravet Martín, stewardess,
Manuel Fernández Cuesta, steward.
Probable cause:
It is believed that the accident was the result of a controlled flight into terrain due to a premature descent in limited visibility, causing the airplane to descent below the MDA.
