JU-Air Ju-52 crashes, killing everyone onboard

A Junkers Ju-52 operated by JU-Air has impacted terrain, killing all 20 people onboard.

The aircraft, registered as HB-HOT, was performing a flight from Locarno to Dubendorf when the accident occurred. Wreckage of the crash was located on the west side of the Piz Segnas mountain in the canton of Graubuenden.

Helicopters that approached the crash site report the aircraft is positioned in a basin roughly 8000 feet above sea level.

Here are some photos of the crash site from The Aviation Herald:

Information about the crash is limited. Authorities, media and first ressponders have little to say about the current situation so far.

JU-Air released a statement on their website:

“A JU-Air Ju-52 crashed on Saturday, August 4. The JU-Air team is deeply saddened and thinks of the passengers, the crew and families and friends of the victims. The canton police has set up a helpline for relatives: 081 257 77 77.

The flight operations of JU-Air is suspended until further notice.

Already purchased tickets and flight vouchers remain valid. Up-to-date information about the future airlines can be obtained as soon as possible on 044 824 55 00 or here on this website.”

Daniel Knecht of the Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board states that initial findings of the crash indicate the aircraft struck the ground at high-speed and possibly vertically too.

Due to the age of the aircraft, it’s highly likely that it wasn’t fitted with a cockpit voice recorder or flight data recorder, making the investigation currently underway a lot harder according to officials.

Unfortunately this wasn’t the only crash in the area. Police say that another aircraft crashed on Saturday morning, killing a family of four.

Fire damage is making hard for investigators to identify the people who passed away.

Investigators are working hard to uncover more details of the crash. In the meantime, airspace restrictions are in place and JU-Air has suspended operations.