Ethiopian Airlines Flight 604 was a scheduled Addis Ababa–Bahir Dar–Asmara flight in which the aircraft caught fire during a belly landing at Bahir Dar Airport, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia, on 15 September 1988.
![]() An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-200, similar to the one involved. | |
Accident | |
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Date | 15 September 1988 |
Summary | Belly landing after bird strike |
Site | Bahir Dar Airport, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia 11°36′17″N 37°19′11″E |
Aircraft | |
Aircraft type | Boeing 737-200 |
Operator | Ethiopian Airlines |
Registration | ET-AJA |
Flight origin | Bole International Airport |
Stopover | Bahir Dar Airport |
Destination | Asmara International Airport |
Passengers | 98 |
Crew | 6 |
Fatalities | 31–35 |
Survivors | 69–73 |
The aircraft involved in the accident was a Boeing 737-260, registration ET-AJA, delivered new to Ethiopian Airlines. At the time of the accident the aircraft was less than a year old.[1]
On 15 September 1988 (1988-09-15),[2]: 51 the aircraft was scheduled to operate the second leg of a domestic Addis Ababa–Bahir Dar–Asmara passenger service with 98 passengers and 6 crew members on board.[1][3] Both engines of the aircraft ingested a flock of speckled pigeons as it took off from Bahir Dar Airport, and subsequently overheated.[1] One of the engines immediately lost thrust, while the other did so on the emergency return to the departure airport.[4] During a gear-up landing, the aircraft caught fire.[1]
There is some discrepancy over the death toll depending upon the source, as this number is claimed to be 35[1] or 31.[4][5][6] The discrepancy likely arose because four bodies could not be recovered.[6] All of the fatalities were among the passengers.[1]
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