Learjet

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    The Question of Foul Play

    The big question: was there foul play involved in the crash of the Mexican governmental airplane that resulted in the death of José Luis Santiago Vasconcelos, Miguel Monterrubio, Arcadio Echeverría, Norma Díaz, Álvaro Sánchez, Gisel Carrillo, and several people in the vicinity of Paseo de la Reforma?

    The Mexican government is at war against the drug cartels and apparently the drug cartels had put a price on the head of Vasconcelos. The problem of figuring out the truth is exacerbated by the citizenry’s distrust; the Mexican government is not exactly known for disclosure. In fact, if the facts prove this was indeed an accident, how will people ever be convinced of it? Because no sign of any explosives were found in the wreckage; and the presumed cause of the crash is that the Lear Jet was adversely affected by turbulence from a large Boeing jet in front of it.

    What: Learjet 45 flown by the Mexican government
    Where: Paseo de la Reforma, Mexico City
    When: 04 NOV 2008
    Who:Passengers included:

    • Mexican Secretary of the Interior Juan Camilo Mouriño, top aide to President Felipe Calderón.
    • José Luis Santiago Vasconcelos-former assistant attorney general and current head of the federal technical secretariat for implementing the recent constitutional reforms on criminal justice and public security.
    • Miguel Monterrubio, director general of social communications with the Interior Secretariat.
    • Arcadio Echeverría, coordinator of special events, office of the Interior Secretary.
    • Norma Díaz, director in the communications department of the Interior Secretariat.
    • Julio César Ramírez Dávalos, pilot.
    • Álvaro Sánchez, co-pilot.
    • Gisel Carrillo, stewardess.

    Why: At 18:45, although the aircraft was instructed to switch to the Tower frequency which the pilot acknowledged but never contacter Mexico Tower. The Learjet then crashed on the Avenida Reforma and caught fire. Several cars were destroyed and at least five people on the ground were killed.

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    Mexico City Fatal Crash Update


    See the original at Aviation Safety net
    Contact photographer Harro Ranter

    Update:Thursday investigators found the “black box” voice recorder; the data recorder with navigation information was recovered on Wednesday. The boxes will be examined in the US. Rumors abound that the crash was not an accident.
    Information released (In Spanish):

    What: Learjet 45 flown by the Mexican government
    Where: Paseo de la Reforma, Mexico City
    When: 04 NOV 2008
    Who:Passengers included:

    • Mexican Secretary of the Interior Juan Camilo Mouriño, top aide to President Felipe Calderón.
    • José Luis Santiago Vasconcelos-former assistant attorney general and current head of the federal technical secretariat for implementing the recent constitutional reforms on criminal justice and public security.
    • Miguel Monterrubio, director general of social communications with the Interior Secretariat.
    • Arcadio Echeverría, coordinator of special events, office of the Interior Secretary.
    • Norma Díaz, director in the communications department of the Interior Secretariat.
    • Julio César Ramírez Dávalos, pilot.
    • Álvaro Sánchez, co-pilot.
    • Gisel Carrillo, stewardess.

    Why: At 18:45, although the aircraft was instructed to switch to the Tower frequency which the pilot acknowledged but never contacter Mexico Tower. The Learjet then crashed on the Avenida Reforma and caught fire. Several cars were destroyed and at least five people on the ground were killed.

    United States investigators have been called in to help quell the rumors that the flight was sabotaged by drug cartels. Two investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration began working at the crash site on Tuesday night and the NTSB sent a team to investigate. Due to a history of government cover-ups, Mexicans don’t believe the Mexican government will tell the truth about the cause of the crash.

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    Update on Learjet Crash


    Click to view full size phot
    Contact photographer Enrique C. Rivera

    What: Learjet 45 flown by the Mexican government
    Where: Mexico City
    When: 04 NOV 2008
    Who: Mexican Interior Minister Juan Camilo Mourino, Deputy Attorney General Josi Luis Santiago Vasconcelos and Miguel Monterubio Cubas, the director of social communication.
    Why: At 18:45, although the aircraft was instructed to switch to the Tower frequency which the pilot acknowledged but never contacter Mexico Tower. The Learjet then crashed on the Avenida Reforma and caught fire. Several cars were destroyed and at least five people on the ground were killed.

    United States investigators have been called in to help quell the rumors that the flight was sabotaged by drug cartels. Two investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration began working at the crash site on Tuesday night and the NTSB sent a team to investigate. Due to a history of government cover-ups, Mexicans don’t believe the Mexican government will tell the truth about the cause of the crash.

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    Mexican Interior Minister Juan Camilo Mourino Killed in Lear Crash


    What: Lear jet en route from the north-returning from an event in the city of San Luis Potosi, central city of San Luis Potosi to Mexico City
    Where: in the street street in an upscale business district in Mexico City
    When: Tuesday Nov 4 during rush hour
    Who: Eight people killed , including Mexican Interior Minister Juan Camilo Mourino, former Deputy Attorney General Josi Luis Santiago Vasconcelos and Miguel Monterubio Cubas, the director of social communication. Forty people on the ground were injured.
    Why: The vice president of the national civil aviation rescue committee is quoted as saying, “It could have been anything, from mechanical failure to sabotage.” It appeared that something happened to the plane in the air before the plane nosedived straight into the ground and set two dozen cars on fire in the posh Lomas de Chapultepec neighborhood.

    Eight are confirmed dead. 40 have been hospitalized. 1800 locals were evacuated. Sabotage has not been ruled out, because Jose Luis Santiago Vasconcelos, the deputy attorney general was a key player for years in Mexico’s army-led war on drug cartels. Mourino was 37, married with three children, and a rising star in Mexican politics.

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    Mexican Interior Minister Juan Camilo Mourino Killed in Lear Crash


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer John R. Beckman

    What: Lear jet en route from the north-central city of San Luis Potosi to Mexico City
    Where: in the street street in an upscale business district in Mexico City
    When: Tuesday Nov 4 during rush hour
    Who: Eight people killed , including Mexican Interior Minister Juan Camilo Mourino, former Deputy Attorney General Josi Luis Santiago Vasconcelos and Miguel Monterubio Cubas, the director of social communication. Forty people on the ground were injured.
    Why: The vice president of the national civil aviation rescue committee is quoted as saying, “It could have been anything, from mechanical failure to sabotage.” It appeared that something happened to the plane in the air before the plane nosedived straight into the ground.

  • Learjet Crash that Injured DJ

    Date: 19 SEP 2008
    Time: 23:53
    Type: Learjet 60
    Operator: Inter Travel And Services
    Registration: N999LJ
    C/n / msn: 314
    First flight: 2006
    Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney Canada PW305A
    Crew: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
    Passengers: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 4
    Total: Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 6
    Airplane damage: Destroyed
    Airplane fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
    Location: Columbia Metropolitan Airport, SC (CAE) (United States of America)
    Phase: Takeoff (TOF)
    Nature: Executive
    Departure airport: Columbia Metropolitan Airport, SC (CAE/KCAE), United States of America
    Destination airport: Los Angeles-Van Nuys Airport, CA (VNY), United States of America

    The flight was attempting to take off on Columbia Metropolitan Airport, SC (CAE) runway 11, but overran the runway. It crashed through a perimeter fence, hit an antennae array and lights, then hit an embankment along Highway 302.

    Sources:
    http://aviation-safety.net

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    DJ AM Travis Barker Crash Update

    What: Learjet N999LJ owned by Global Exec Aviation en route to Van Nuys, Calif
    Where: South Carolina
    When: departed shortly before midnight Friday
    Who: carrying six people Chris Baker, 29, of Studio City, Calif., and Charles Still, 25, of Los Angeles — died, as did pilot Sarah Lemmon, 31, of Anaheim Hills, Calif., and co-pilot James Bland, 52, of Carlsbad, Former Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker and celebrity DJ AM were critically injured
    Why: air traffic controllers reporting seeing sparks. The plane was traveling at least 92 mph, its minimum takeoff speed, when the crew thought the tire burst The plane hurtled off the end of a runway and crashed through antennas and a fence, crossing a five-lane highway and ending up on an embankment in flames.The plane was heading to Van Nuys, Calif.

    The FAA is researching the possibility that a blown tire caused the jet crash. Investigations have turned up evidence that tire may have blown just before takeoff at the Columbia Metropolitan Airport. The cockpit voice recorder indicates that the pilot and co-pilot informed air traffic controllers they’d heard a tire burst and they attempted to abort takeoff.

    In serious condition is Travis Barker, who was the drummer for the band Blink-182. Barker was one of the two people wounded when the Learjet 60 crashed on a highway and caught fire.

    Listed in critical condition is Adam Michael Goldstein otherwise known as celebrity disc jockey DJ AM. He reportedly saved his own life by jumping from the burning plane while it was skidding down a runway.

    Joseph M. Still Burn Center said they both suffered second- and third-degree burns

    Aircraft (FAA)

    Manufacturer: Learjet Inc
    Model: 60 Search all Learjet Inc 60
    Year built: 2006
    Serial Number (C/N): 314
    Mode S Code: 53372425
    Aircraft Type: Fixed wing multi engine
    Amateur-Built: No
    Number of Seats: 11
    Number of Engines: 2
    Engine Type: Turbofan
    Engine Manufacturer and Model: P&w Canada PW305A

    Owner (FAA)

    Registration Type: Corporation
    Owner: Inter Travel And Services Inc
    Address: Irvine, CA 92614-2594
    United States
    Region: Western-Pacific

    Status (FAA)

    Certification Class: Standard
    Certification Issued: 2007-11-16
    Air Worthiness Test: 2006-12-14
    Last Action Taken: 2008-08-11
    Current Status: Valid
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    4 die in South Carolina Lear Jet Crash


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Michael Carter

    What: Learjet N999LJ owned by Global Exec Aviation en route to Van Nuys, Calif
    Where:
    When: departed shortly before midnight Friday
    Who: carrying six people Chris Baker, 29, of Studio City, Calif., and Charles Still, 25, of Los Angeles — died, as did pilot Sarah Lemmon, 31, of Anaheim Hills, Calif., and co-pilot James Bland, 52, of Carlsbad, Former Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker and celebrity DJ AM were critically injured
    Why: air traffic controllers reporting seeing sparks. The plane was traveling at least 92 mph, its minimum takeoff speed, when the crew thought the tire burst The plane hurtled off the end of a runway and crashed through antennas and a fence, crossing a five-lane highway and ending up on an embankment in flames.The plane was heading to Van Nuys, Calif.

    In serious condition is Travis Barker, who was the drummer for the band Blink-182. Barker was one of the two people wounded when the Learjet 60 crashed on a highway and caught fire.

    Listed in critical condition is Adam Michael Goldstein otherwise known as celebrity disc jockey DJ AM. He reportedly saved his own life by jumping from the burning plane while it was skidding down a runway.

    Joseph M. Still Burn Center said they both suffered second- and third-degree burns

    Aircraft (FAA)

    Manufacturer: Learjet Inc
    Model: 60 Search all Learjet Inc 60
    Year built: 2006
    Serial Number (C/N): 314
    Mode S Code: 53372425
    Aircraft Type: Fixed wing multi engine
    Amateur-Built: No
    Number of Seats: 11
    Number of Engines: 2
    Engine Type: Turbofan
    Engine Manufacturer and Model: P&w Canada PW305A

    Owner (FAA)

    Registration Type: Corporation
    Owner: Inter Travel And Services Inc
    Address: Irvine, CA 92614-2594
    United States
    Region: Western-Pacific

    Status (FAA)

    Certification Class: Standard
    Certification Issued: 2007-11-16
    Air Worthiness Test: 2006-12-14
    Last Action Taken: 2008-08-11
    Current Status: Valid