By Anthony Menzies
|Published 29 November 2016
Overnight on 28 November an RJ85 aircraft operated by LAMIA Corporation of Bolivia crashed with nine crew and 72 passengers aboard, while on route from Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia. The aircraft was due to land at Jose Maria Cordova airport, Medellin, Colombia, but came down in Rionegro just minutes before its expected landing. The aircraft was constructed by British Aerospace in 1999, one of 170 such aircraft manufactured up to 2002.
The accident occurred in the "El Gordo" mountain in the Antioquia Department of Colombia, and initial media reports refer to an electrical fault, though the cause remains to be confirmed. There are currently reported to be six survivors among the passengers, consisting of players and coaches from the football team, Copacoense Brasil, together with members of the press and the aircraft's crew. Rescue operations have been hindered by poor weather in the area.
LAMIA (Línea Aérea Mérida Internacional de Aviación, Compañía Anónima) is a Venezuelan entity with its origin in the Venezuelan state of Mérida. The Company formed in 2009 and has operated private charters from Bolivia since 2014. In a corporate presentation delivered just a month ago, the company advertised the availability of the aircraft in question with a capacity of 95 passengers and 3,000kg of cargo, maintained to international standards with crew that undergoes training biannually at a facility in Switzerland. The publicity also referred expressly to the company's liability insurance.
DAC Beachcroft's Bogotá office continues to monitor the situation closely.
Anthony Menzies
Partner
Londres
