1985 Cubana de Aviación Ilyushin Il-18 crash
Ilyushin Il-18D · Accident
From José Martí International Airport (HAV) to Augusto C. Sandino (Managua) International Airport (MGA)
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
- 38 · all aircraft and ground
- Ground fatalities
- Unknown
- Occupants
- 38
- 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
Ilyushin Il-18D
- Aircraft type
- Ilyushin IL-18
- 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
- CU-T899
- Operator
- Cubana de Aviación
- Onboard fatalities
- 38
- Route
- From José Martí International Airport (HAV)To Augusto C. Sandino (Managua) International Airport (MGA)
Cause areas
- Not determined › Not determined
- Aircraft › Aircraft power plant
From the investigation findings the Wikipedia article reports, sorted into the NTSB's cause areas with AI assistance.
Approximate · Coordinates from the Wikipedia article; not checked against an investigation report.
From the Wikipedia article
On 19 January 1985, a Cubana de Aviación Ilyushin Il-18D, operating a scheduled international flight from José Martí International Airport, Cuba, to Augusto C. Sandino International Airport, Nicaragua. It crashed near San José de las Lajas, Cuba, killing all 38 people on board. The crash was attributed to a malfunctioning artificial horizon or shifting of the aircraft's cargo.
There were a large number of Nicaraguan government officials killed in the crash, including the vice president of the Central Bank of Nicaragua, the secretary of international relations of the Sandinista Workers' Centre and the American secretary of the Committee for Peace.
The crash was one of the worst aviation accidents in Cuba.
Accident
The flight was operated by Cubana de Aviación with a 1968 Soviet-build Ilyushin Il-18D registered as CU-T899 (MSN: 188011102). The aircraft took off from José Martí International Airport in Havana, heading to Managua, Nicaragua, at around 8 am local time. Shortly after takeoff the aircraft banked 30 degrees right two times, then baked left with a sharper angle and eventually crashed into a highway near San José de las Lajas, southwest of Havana. According to witnessess the aircraft was in trouble directly after take-off. All 38 people on board were killed.
Investigation and cause
Investigation
Initial reports stated a technical malfunction of the aircraft caused the crash. It was also stated the aircraft couldn't make contact with a control tower on the Isle of Youth, south of the western coast of Cuba.
Cuba investigated the crash. The final investigation couldn't determine the exact cause of the crash. Two possible reaseons were indicated. At first failure of the artificial horizon; the flight instrument that indicates the orientation; could have cause the crash. It is also possible that the cargo shifted during the turn to the right, modifying the Center of Gravity and resulting in the loss of control of the aircraft. The main finding of the investigation indicated that a fire broke out in one of the engines.
Text from the Wikipedia article “1985 Cubana de Aviación Ilyushin Il-18 crash” (revision 1361372665, 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: 1985 Cubana de Aviación Ilyushin Il-18 crash
- Revision
- 1361372665 · 2026-06-27 · retrieved 2026-09-18
- Wikidata
- Q140378201
- 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 "1985 Cubana de Aviación Ilyushin Il-18 crash" (page 82762534, revision 1361372665)
- Date
- Wikipedia infobox: date
- Place and country
- Wikipedia infobox: site
- Map position
- Wikipedia article coordinates
- Aircraft, operator and route
- Wikipedia infobox: aircraft type, registration, operator, origin and destination; route airports from the linked airport articles' Wikidata codes (OurAirports)
- Operation
- operator is an airline according to Wikidata
- Fatalities
- Wikipedia infobox: aircraft fatalities
- Ground fatalities
- not stated in the Wikipedia infobox
- Summary
- Wikipedia article lead
Source notes (1)
- Wikipedia · Facts from the Wikipedia article's infobox and coordinates, not checked against an investigation report. Independent review pending.