What Time Did the Aaliyah Plane Crash Occur
The aircraft carrying Aaliyah crashed on August 25, 2001, at approximately 6:50 p.m. local time shortly after takeoff from Marsh Harbour Airport in the Bahamas. The twin-engine Cessna 402B failed to gain altitude and struck a pole and a seawall moments after becoming airborne, killing all nine people on board within seconds. The NTSB final report confirmed the crash sequence began seconds after rotation, with the aircraft failing to climb and impacting terrain near the departure end of the runway NTSB accident docket REV01MA051.
Local emergency responders arrived within minutes of the crash, but the impact and post-crash fire left no survivors among the passengers and crew. The accident site was a short distance from the runway, and the time-stamped radar data from the airport tower provided the primary basis for the official timeline. The crash is consistently referenced in aviation safety databases as an example of a runway-overrun or failed-climb accident involving a small twin-engine aircraft.
Flight Details, Aircraft, and Operator
The aircraft was a twin-engine Cessna 402B, a fixed-wing, six-to-nine passenger plane often used for short regional flights and charter operations. The flight departed Marsh Harbour Airport bound for Opa-locka Airport in Florida, and the aircraft was operated by a Florida-based charter company that had been under scrutiny for safety and regulatory compliance issues FAA type certificate data sheet for Cessna 402.
The NTSB investigation identified multiple factors, including the aircraft being overloaded beyond its maximum takeoff weight and the pilot's decision to attempt the flight under conditions that did not meet regulatory requirements. The plane carried a total of nine occupants, including the pilot, seven passengers, and a security guard, with the weight and balance calculations later cited as a central element of the accident chain NTSB accident docket REV01MA051.
Aftermath, Regulatory Impact, and Industry Response
The crash prompted renewed attention to safety rules governing small charter flights, pilot qualifications, and passenger limits in the general aviation sector. The FAA and NTSB used the accident findings to reinforce guidance on weight-and-balance compliance, pre-flight risk assessment, and the importance of adhering to maximum certified takeoff weights for light twin-engine aircraft FAA Part 91 general operating rules.
In the years following the accident, industry analysts and aviation safety organizations cited the case in discussions about charter safety oversight and the need for stricter enforcement of weight limits and pilot qualification standards. The incident remains a reference point in safety briefings for small aircraft operations and is linked to broader efforts to improve data collection and risk reporting for regional and charter flights NTSB accident docket REV01MA051.