March 4, 1962 - Douala, Cameroon: Trans-African DC-7 crashed on takeoff, killing all 111 people aboard.

May 20, 1965 - Boeing 720B of Pakistan International Airways crashes in the desert near Cairo, killing 124 people.

April 20, 1968 - South African Airways B-707 crashes near Windhoek, killing 122 of the 129 aboard.

Dec. 3, 1972 - Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands: Spanish charter jet carrying West German tourists crashed on takeoff; all 155 aboard killed.

Feb 21, 1973 - A Libyan Airlines B-727 crashes in the Sinai desert after being fired upon by an Israeli fighter.

Jan. 22, 1973 -  Kano, Nigeria: 171 Nigerian Muslims returning from Mecca and 5 crewmen died in crash.

Feb. 21, 1973 - Sinai: civilian Libyan Arab Airlines Boeing 727 shot down by Israeli fighters after it had strayed off course; 108 died, 5 survived. Officials claimed that the pilot had ignored fighters' warnings to land.

Dec 23, 1973 -- All 105 aboard die when an Air Maroc Caravelle crashes into mountains near Rabat, Morocco.

Aug 3, 1975 - 188 die when a Boeing 707 on charter to Royal Air Maroc, returning Moroccan workers home after vacation in France,

Hydro-Aire 747 at Lagos December 2003

 plunged into mountainside; crashes in mountains near Agadir, Morocco.

March 27, 1977 - 583 people die in worst commercial airline disaster to date when two Boeing 747 airliners, a KLM Royal Dutch Airlines plane and a Pan American jet, collide and burst into flames on the runway at Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Canary Islands. All 249 on KLM plane and 334 of 394 aboard Pan Am jet killed. Total of 583 is highest for any type of aviation disaster.

Nov. 26, 1979 - Jeddah, Saudi Arabia: Pakistan International Airlines 707 carrying pilgrims returning from Mecca crashed on takeoff; all 156 aboard killed.

Aug. 19, 1980 - Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: all 301 aboard Saudi Arabian jet killed when burning plane made safe landing but passengers were unable to escape.

Nov 8, 1983 - Angolan Airlines Boeing 737 crashes on takeoff at Lubango airport, killing all 126 on board. Claims by UNITA guerrillas to have shot it down are denied by official Angolan news agency.

Nov 28, 1987 - All 160 aboard a South African Airways Boeing 747 Combi (the Helderberg) die after crashing into the Indian Ocean off Mauritius. Bulk cargo of lithium batteries is suspected to have started an uncontrollable cargo-hold fire.

Sept 19, 1989 - A French UTA DC-10 airliner crashes in the Sahara desert, killing all 171 on board. Officials suspect bomb caused crash, the third DC-10 to crash in two months.

July 11, 1991 - A Canadian chartered DC-8 crashes during an emergency landing at Jeddah, which it had left minutes earlier taking Nigerian pilgrims home from Mecca. All 261 aboard killed. Caused by flat tire (on taxi) starting a fire after gear retraction.

Sept 26, 1992 - A C-130 aircraft of the Nigerian Air Force crashes minutes after leaving Lagos airport. 173 bodies found, a further 27 missing.

Dec 22, 1992 - A Libyan Boeing 727 with 158 people aboard crashes near the town of Souk al-Sabt, about 35 miles from Tripoli, resulting in the deaths of all aboard. Reports suggest crash caused by mid-air collision.

Jun 17, 1995 - Forty-eight people, including players from a local soccer team, are killed when their Casa 212 military plane crashes in southwestern Angola.

June 25, 1995 - Harka Airlines Soviet-era Tupolev TU 134 crashes at Lagos airport, Nigeria, killing 15 people.
Nov 13, 1995 - Nigeria Airways Boeing 737 crashes on landing at Kaduna, northern Nigeria, killing nine people.

Dec 3, 1995 - Cameroon airliner crashes while coming in to land at the commercial capital Douala, killing around 60 people.

Dec 18, 1995 - A Zairean passenger plane crashes in Northern Angola killing 141 people. The plane, an Electra, was owned by Trans Service Airlift, a private company, based at Kinshasa's Ndjili airport.

Jan 8, 1996 - At least 350 people die (and 470 injured on the ground) when a Russian-built Antonov-32 cargo plane crashed into a crowded market in central Kinshasa, capital of Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo).

Jan 30, 1996 - Thirty-four people are killed and 20 injured when their passenger aircraft crashes in Angola's Cuanza Norte province. About 60 passengers were on board.

Nov 7, 1996 - A Nigerian Boeing 727 of ADC flying from Port Harcourt to Lagos, with 142 passengers and nine crew members, crashed with no survivors. To avoid an ATC-caused head-on collision with a Triax aircraft, the flight crew immediately took evasive action. During this maneuver, the Boeing rolled to an excessive bank angle and control was lost. Within 16 seconds speed had increased from 280 knots to almost the speed of sound.

Nov 23, 1996 - A total of 125 of the 175 passengers and crew died when a hijacked Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 767 crashed into the sea off the Comoros Islands.

Jan 31, 1997 - Thirty-seven people die when an Angolan Air Force plane crashes in UNITA-held territory in western Angola.

Sep 2, 1998 - Angolan UNITA rebels shoot down Antonov-26 military cargo plane in the diamond-rich northeast, killing all 24 people on board.

Dec 26, 1998 - U.N. C-130 transport plane crashes shortly after taking off from the town of Huambo, heading for Saurimo in Angola's northeast. All 14 aboard are killed.

Feb 2, 1999 - Twenty-eight people killed when an Aviacao Civile privately-owned Antonov 12 aircraft crashes into the poor Luanda suburb of Cazenga.

Oct 11, 1999 - Grounded Air Botswana ATR-42 captain took off and advised that he was going to crash into other ATR42's on the tarmac. After carrying out three loops, this he did and three aircraft were destroyed...leaving his airline with one unserviceable BAe-146 at Gaborone-Sir Seretse Khama International Airport

Jan 30, 2000 - Kenya Airways Airbus A-310 crashed in the sea shortly after takeoff from Abidjan in the Ivory Coast, killing 179 passengers and crew (Ten people survived).

Aug 23, 2000 - Gulf Air Airbus A320 crashed in the waters off Bahrain on a flight from Cairo, killing all 143 aboard. Pilot disorientation (the "pitch-up illusion" over the black waters of the Gulf at night).,

Nov 1, 2000 - Russian-built passenger plane crashes after exploding in the air in northeastern Angola, killing all 48 people on board. UNITA rebels say they shot it down.

Nov 15, 2000 - An Antonov plane crashes near Angola's capital Luanda, killing all 39 people aboard.

March 17, 2001 - Beechcraft 1900C-1 crashes into mountains near Quilemba, Angola in heavy rain, killing all but one of 17 people on board.

Jan 26, 2002 - Antonov aircraft crashes in Angola's Moxico province. All 30 aboard believed killed.

Feb 08, 2002 - A Ukrainian AN-32 cargo plane crashed high in the Atlas mountains of southern Morocco at 9,900ft and killed all eight crew members, not long after leaving the coastal city of Agadir, 370 miles south of Rabat.

May 4, 2002 - BAC 1-11-500 belonging to Nigeria's EAS Airlines with 105 people on board bound for Lagos crashes and bursts into flames in the northern Nigerian city of Kano.  It plowed into a poor, densely populated suburb shortly after takeoff, killing 148. Dead included all 76 aboard and dozens on the ground.

July 8, 2003 - Port Sudan, Sudan: A Sudan Airways airplane, a Boeing 737, experienced technical difficulties shortly after takeoff and crashed while attempting to return to the Port Sudan airport. One child survived and 116 passengers and crew perished.

Dec. 25, 2003 - Cotonou, Benin: A chartered Boeing 727 jet bound for Beirut, Lebanon, crashed after hitting a building on takeoff, killing at least 140 people.

See also     link ONE        link TWO  (a more comprehensive listing)

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