Summary Loss of control Crew 5 Survivors 5 Survivor 5 | Passengers 71 Injuries (non-fatal) 5 Date 3 December 1995 Fatalities 71 Passenger count 71 | |
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Similar Nigeria Airways Flight 357, 1995 Alaska Boeing E, Banat Air Flight 166, Intercontinental de Aviación, Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 56 | ||
Cameroon Airlines Flight 3701 was an air accident that occurred on 3 December 1995. The Boeing 737-200, registration TJ-CBE, crashed after it lost control near Douala, Cameroon. On its second approach to Douala International Airport power was lost to one engine. The accident killed 71 passengers and crew and five people were injured but survived.
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Accident
Cameroon Airlines Flight 3701 took off from Cadjehoun Airport in Cotonou, Benin, on a flight to Douala International Airport. The Boeing 737-200 had 71 passengers and five crew on board and after a one-hour flight was ready to land at Douala International Airport, but as the landing gear was lowered the nose gear light showed that it was not down. The pilots called air traffic control saying that they had landing gear problems and the crew elected to abort the approach. Some minutes later they tried a second approach but the pilots did not see that the engine two was operating at high power while the No. 1 engine was not developing power. Then the aircraft went into a steep dive and crashed 6 km (3.7 miles) short of the runway in a mangrove swamp. The aircraft burst into flames, killing 71 passengers and crew. Five people survived the accident.
Cause
The cause of the loss of control and the loss of power to engine No. 1 is unknown. There was never a report on the accident. According to Cameroon Airline's Chief Pilot (ret.) Jean Louis Angounou, interviewed in May 2009 on Le Jour Quotidien, the exact cause of the accident has never been determined because "in Cameroon, some inquiries begin but never come to an end".