Site near Benghazi, Libya Crew 6 Survivors 106 Date 2 December 1977 Summary Fuel starvation Passenger count 159 | Passengers 159 Fatalities 59 Aircraft type Tupolev Tu-154 Number of deaths 59 Survivor 106 Location Libya | |
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Similar Aeroflot Flight 331, Japan Airlines Flight 715, 1977 Gary Powers helicopter, TAP Portugal Flight 425, SA de Transport Aérien Fli | ||
The 1977 Benghazi Libyan Arab Airlines Tu-154 crash occurred after a Tupolev Tu-154 ran out of fuel near Benghazi on 2 December 1977. A total of 59 passengers were killed in the crash.
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Aircraft
The aircraft was a Tu-154A registered LZ-BTN and had its first flight in 1974. It was one of six Tu-154s to be leased by Libyan Arab Airlines from Balkan Bulgarian Airlines for that year's pilgrim flights to Mecca for the Hajj.
Accident
The aircraft took off from King Abdulaziz International Airport in Saudi Arabia on a flight to Benina International Airport in the Libyan city of Benghazi with a crew of six and 159 passengers – pilgrims returning to Libya from the Hajj – on board. Egyptian airspace was closed to Libyan aircraft at the time, necessitating an indirect route to Benghazi instead of the direct route across Egypt; the crew reportedly did not plan for the longer flight time, leaving the aircraft short of fuel. As the aircraft neared Benghazi heavy fog blanketed the airport and the crew could not land the aircraft. After failing to locate the alternate airport the aircraft ran out of fuel and crashed during the crew's subsequent attempt to make an emergency landing, killing 59 passengers.