South African Airways Flight 295 - Crash Animation

South African Airways Flight 295, a Boeing 747-200M (a combination of a passenger and cargo aircraft) was a flight between Taipei and Johannesburg with a stopover in Mauritius on November 28, 1987 with 159 passengers and crew on board along with 6 pallets of cargo on the main deck.

The Crash:
After take-off from Taipei, the pilots contacted Hong Kong ATC and made their way towards Mauritius. At some point during the flight a fire broke out in the cargo section of the plane and was most likely not put out before impact. The pilots were supposed to depressurise the aircraft by opening the cargo doors at a safe altitude but there is no proof that this happened. The tail of the 747 then broke away from the aircraft and the flight eventually crashed into the ocean about 248km away from Mauritius killing everyone on board. The cause of the fire is still disputed and many theories have come up over the years.

All video clips are from Air Crash Investigation: Fanning the Flames (S05E04)

Music: www.bensound.com