The Avro RJ85 operated by Bolivian airline Lamia carrying 77 passengers that crashed near Medellin ws formelry registered in Ireland and operated by Cityjet.
It was carrying members of the Chapecoense soccer team who were scheduled to play against Atlético Nacional in the first leg of the 2016 Copa Sudamericana final, the South American equivalent of the Europe League. See flightradar playback here. See pictures here. There were 9 crew and 68 passengers on board of which 6 have survived.
The RJ85 was formerly operated Dublin based Cityjet as EI-RJK between 2007 and 2013. It first flew on march 26 1999. See photo here. Lamia have a fleet of three aircraft, all Avro-RJ.
According to an airport press release, it was reporting an electrical fault to the control tower and there are surivers, but are hard to reach due to inhospitable terrain and poor weather.
Brazil’s O Globo newspaper said Colombian civil aviation authorities had confirmed there was no fuel in the aircraft’s tank and have opened an investigation. Delays getting from São Paulo to Bolivia, where the team chartered the aircraft, meant a planned refuelling stop in Cobija, Bolivia, was abandoned because the airport does not operate at night
The airline’s owner was reported among the fatalities.
A total of 387 BAe 146 / Avro RJ’s were manufactured between 1983 and 2002. The aircraft has been involved in 14 hull-loss accidents with a total of 266 fatalities including a crash deliberately caused by a disgruntled airline employee in California in 1987 which caused 43 fatalities.
