Overview
- On April 25, 1980, the Manchester–Tenerife flight hit La Esperanza on approach to Tenerife North, killing all 146 people onboard.
- The articles republish cockpit voice recorder excerpts, including comments like “bloody strange hold” and “let’s get out of here” in the final minute.
- Controller Justo Camin’s phrase “turn to the left” was understood as an immediate turn rather than the left‑hand direction of the intended holding pattern.
- The crew did not read back the instruction and were cleared to 5,000 feet, far below the area’s minimum safe altitude, before the ground‑proximity warning sounded.
- Spanish investigators primarily blamed the crew, while a British review criticized non‑standard ATC procedures and the low clearance, reinforcing industry focus on standardized holds and strict readbacks.