On November 15, 1992, a devastating plane crash shook the Dominican Republic when a Cuban airline Aero Caribbean plane crashed into Loma Isabel de Torres, Puerto Plata. The aircraft, an Ilyushin-18 with registration 11-18CUTL-270, collided with the mountain at an altitude of 850 meters, quickly turning into a fireball due to its full fuel tanks. The tragedy occurred around 6:00 PM on a cold Sunday evening. The plane was attempting to land at Puerto Plata’s Gregorio Luperón International Airport as part of a stopover on its return flight to Havana, Cuba, after having dropped off a group of passengers at Santo Domingo’s Las Américas International Airport.
The impact resulted in the deaths of 34 people, including 16 Dominicans, 16 Cubans, and 2 Italians. Among the deceased was the entire chess team from San Francisco de Macorís, and prominent figures such as Dr. Cristóbal Merette Luna (Guidino), former president of the Basketball Association and the Puerto Plata Sports Union. Rescue efforts began that night but were interrupted by bad weather. Recovery operations continued in the following days, involving the Civil Defense, Red Cross, Fire Department, and Dominican Air Force, who worked diligently in difficult terrain.
Aviation technicians explained that instead of following the usual route along the Atlantic Ocean coastline, the aircraft traveled west-east, reaching the lower part of the city, specifically by the Costámbar tourist project, and continued south of the mountain slope between the base and the summit, crashing there and forming a fireball visible from hundreds of kilometers away.
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hey man, nice story, but this is probably better suited for Screenshots and Videos
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Is this a real crash story…? If so, you should put this on Real World Aviation
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