Gabon Express Flight 221

On 8 June 2004, shortly after take-off from Libreville International Airport, the right-hand engine failed. The crew returned to Libreville but had problems lowering the undercarriage. At 09:34, uncertain on whether the landing gear was extended, the pilot ditched the aircraft offshore, around 3 kilometres (1.9 mi; 1.6 nmi) away from the airport, a few dozens of metres away from the beach of La Sablière.^{[3][1][4]: 53}

Immediately after the crash, fire crew and emergency services were deployed. Eleven survivors were evacuated from the scene and were taken by helicopters to local hospital in Libreville; none had received serious injuries. Divers were deployed by authorities to rescue people trapped inside the wreckage. Local fishermen, Gabonese firefighters, the French Navy, and the French military also joined the rescue effort.^[2][5][6] As the aircraft did not immediately sink, fishermen were able to rescue multiple passengers.^[4]: 54

The following day, President of Gabon Omar Bongo declared three days of national mourning in honor to the victims of the crash, with the government's office stating that a national funeral would be organised.^[2] Families of the victims boycotted the official mourning ceremony organized by the government, which had been scheduled for 14 June, believing that faster rescue efforts would have prevented the fatalities.^[7]

The crash also renewed debates of aviation safety and the effectiveness of rescues in the event of a disaster in Gabon.^[7] On 15 June, the airline ceased operations.^[8]

By 29 July, according to the investigation's preliminary findings, the hydraulic pump on the left engine experienced problems, preventing the failure of the right engine from being compensated. In addition, documents relating to the aircraft's maintenance operations were only correctly maintained until 9 April 2004.^[9] An investigation later revealed that the crash was caused by the government's poor aircraft maintenance standards.^[10]