CAAC Flight 3303
Hawker Siddeley Trident · Controlled flight into terrain
From Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (former), China to Guilin Qifengling Airport, China
Event
- Event typeAccident: someone killed or seriously injured, or the aircraft substantially damaged (NTSB definition). Incident: an occurrence that affected or could have affected safety, short of that. Glossary
- Accident
- Event fatalities
- 112 · all aircraft and ground
- Ground fatalities
- Unknown
- Occupants
- 112
- Survivors
- 0
- InjuriesFatal: death within 30 days. Serious: over 48 hours in hospital within a week, most broken bones, severe bleeding, nerve or organ damage, or serious burns. Minor: anything less. Glossary
- Unknown
- OperationWhat kind of flying it was, grouped by the rules it flew under: airline (US Part 121), air taxi and commuter (Part 135), general aviation (Part 91 and similar), military or government. Glossary
- Airline
Hawker Siddeley Trident
- Aircraft type
- Hawker SIDDELEY TRIDENT
- Category
- Airplane · from aircraft type
- RegistrationThe aircraft's tail number, such as N12345 or G-ABCD. Registrations are reissued, so the same one years apart can be a different aircraft. Glossary
- B-266
- Operator
- Caac
- Onboard fatalities
- 112
- Route
- From Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (former), ChinaTo Guilin Qifengling Airport, China
Cause areas
- Personnel issues › Miscellaneous
- Environmental issues › Operating environment
- Aircraft › Aircraft systems
- Personnel issues › Psychological
From the investigation findings the Wikipedia article reports, sorted into the NTSB's cause areas with AI assistance.
Approximate · Estimated position: the centre of Yangshuo, near the place the Wikipedia article names. Not the accident site.
From the Wikipedia article
CAAC Flight 3303 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from the former Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport to Guilin Qifengling Airport, China. It was serviced by a Hawker Siddeley Trident, registration B-266, that crashed into a mountain on 26 April 1982, killing all 112 people aboard.
Accident
At 16:45, as Flight 3303 was on approach to the airport in heavy rain, the crew wanted a north-to-south approach. The airport had no radar; the air traffic controller proceeded to misjudge the distance of the aircraft from the airport, and directed the flight to descend prematurely. The plane flew into a mountain near the town of Yangshuo, exploding and breaking up on impact. The accident killed all 112 people on board.
After the accident, Yangshuo County ordered 67 militiamen to protect the crash site. A Hong Kong Observatory spokesman said at the time that the Guangzhou-Guilin area had been affected by severe weather since 25 April.
Investigation and cause
Investigation
The Civil Aviation Administration of China and the Guangdong Provincial Government investigated the accident. The likely reason for the crash was poor crew resource management, as well as inadequate and erroneous communication from air traffic control. The captain had no experience in flying the Guilin route, and the area is noted for limestone cliffs that make landing hazardous.
Autopilot error was another likely reason for the accident as the CAAC noted that the aircraft began to bank. The flight crew only realized these issues when the aircraft was banked 45 degrees. However, they mistook the data and continued to turn the yoke. The aircraft entered a bank of 180 degrees and crashed into the mountain.
Text from the Wikipedia article “CAAC Flight 3303” (revision 1339310558, retrieved 2026-09-18) by its authors, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Extracted as plain text: references, tables, images and some sections are left out. Read the article
Sources
Wikipedia article: CAAC Flight 3303
- Article
- CAAC Flight 3303
- Revision
- 1339310558 · 2026-02-19 · retrieved 2026-09-18
- Wikidata
- Q5008500
- Licence
- Text CC BY-SA 4.0, by the article's authors; Wikidata CC0; town positions GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
Where each value comes from
- Record
- Wikipedia article "CAAC Flight 3303" (page 26788155, revision 1339310558)
- Date
- Wikipedia infobox: date
- Place and country
- Wikipedia infobox: site
- Map position
- centre of the town the Wikipedia infobox site names (GeoNames, CC BY 4.0)
- Aircraft, operator and route
- Wikipedia infobox: aircraft type, registration, operator, origin and destination; route airports from the linked airport articles' Wikidata codes (OurAirports)
- Operation
- flight number in the article title
- Fatalities
- Wikipedia infobox: aircraft fatalities
- Ground fatalities
- not stated in the Wikipedia infobox
- Summary
- Wikipedia infobox: summary
Source notes (1)
- Wikipedia · Facts from the Wikipedia article's infobox and coordinates, not checked against an investigation report. Independent review pending.