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Events on October 2 in history

Aeroperú Flight 603
1996Oct, 2

A maintenance worker's failure to remove tape covering the static ports of the aircraft causes Aeroperú Flight 603 to crash into the ocean near Lima, Peru, due to instrument failure.

Aeroperú Flight 603 was a scheduled flight from Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, US (KMIA), to Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport in Santiago, Chile (SCEL), with stopovers in Quito, Ecuador and Lima, Peru. On October 2, 1996, the Boeing 757-23A aircraft flying the final leg of the flight crashed, killing all 70 people aboard.

Flying over water, at night, with no visual references, the pilots were unaware of their true altitude, and struggled to control and navigate the aircraft. The investigation determined that the air data computers were unable to show correct airspeed and altitude on cockpit displays because a maintenance worker had failed to remove tape covering the pitot-static system ports on the aircraft exterior.

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Events on 1996

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