This disaster is the crash of an Inex-Adria Aviopromet airliner on Corsica's Mt. San Pietro in early December of 1981. is the 335th day of the year (336th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Gregorian calendar). ... Controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) describes an accident whereby an airworthy aircraft, under pilot control, inadvertently flies into terrain, an obstacle, or water. ... Ajaccio (IPA: , Latin: ; French: ; Corsican: ), is a town in France. ... For other uses, see Corsica (disambiguation). ... Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport (IATA: LJU, ICAO: LJLJ) (Slovenian: ), commonly known as Brnik Airport (Slovenian: ), is the international airport of Ljubljana, Slovenia. ... Ajaccio - Campo dellOro Airport (IATA: AJA, ICAO: LFKJ) is the main airport serving Ajaccio on the French island of Corsica. ... The Douglas DC-9 is a twin-engined jet airliner, first manufactured in 1965 and, in much modified form and under a succession of different names. ...

On December 1, 1981, the McDonnell Douglas MD-81 involved in this accident took off from Brnik Airport on a chartered flight from Slovenia to Corsica's capital city of Ajaccio with 173 Slovenian tourists and 7 crew members. When the aircraft reached the airspace around Ajaccio's Campo dell'Oro Airport, the aircraft entered a holding pattern, awaiting for clearance to land. is the 335th day of the year (336th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Gregorian calendar). ... McDonnell Douglas MD-80 and MD-90 are twin-engine, medium-range, single-aisle commercial jet airplanes. ... Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport (IATA: LJU, ICAO: LJLJ) (Slovenian: ), commonly known as Brnik Airport (Slovenian: ), is the international airport of Ljubljana, Slovenia. ... For other uses, see Corsica (disambiguation). ... Ajaccio (IPA: , Latin: ; French: ; Corsican: ), is a town in France. ... Ajaccio - Campo dellOro Airport (IATA: AJA, ICAO: LFKJ) is the main airport serving Ajaccio on the French island of Corsica. ...

While in its holding pattern, the MD-81 descended through the minimum holding altitude of 6800 feet. As the plane descended, its GPWS gave off several audio warnings, prompting the crew to slowly increase the engine thrust as they pulled up to avoid disaster. Their efforts proved futile, as the MD-81 collided with the top of Mt. San Pietro, killing all 180 people aboard instantly. Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS) monitors an aircrafts height above ground as determined by a radio altimeter. ...

The subsequent investigation into the disaster revealed that the crew did not retain their holding pattern's minimum altitude and maximum speed. The investigation also determined that the imprecise language used by the crew of the MD-81 and the air traffic controller also played a role in the accident.

External links

• AirDisaster.Com - Mt. San Pietro air disaster photo
• PlaneCrashInfo.Com - Mt. San Pietro air disaster entry
• Aviation Safety Network - Picture of the MD-81 from the Mt. San Pietro air disaster

Coordinates: 41°45′15″N, 8°58′40″E Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...