The U.S. aircraft register, updated daily
Accidents · NTSB DCA96RA020 · Preliminary: the investigation is not finished

Boeing B757 accident near Buga, CO, December 21, 1995

On December 21, 1995 at about 2:38 am local time, a Boeing B757, registered N651AA, was involved in an accident near Buga. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 160 people were killed and 4 people were seriously injured.

The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged

The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
December 21, 1995 · about 2:38 am local time
Place
Buga, Colombia
Type
Accident
Injuries
160 people were killed and 4 people were seriously injured.
Weather
not recorded
Aircraft
Boeing B757
Registration
N651AA · no longer on the register
Damage
Not recorded
Flight
Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)

The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English

The aircraft

  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Operator: Amr Corporation

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew8
Passengers1524

Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report

The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.

Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.