The heartbreaking ordeal occurred 25 years ago and claimed the lives of everyone onboardHarrowing cockpit audio revealed the moment an Alaska Airlines plane plummeted in the Pacific Ocean, a tragedy that later spurred discussions around aviation safety standards, emergency response protocols, and even aerospace liability insurance policies.
On January 31, 2000, Alaska Airlines Flight 261 was scheduled to travel from Licenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico, to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport in Washington.
While the aircraft successfully left Mexico, it never made it to its final destination after the plane started to experience technical difficulties during the flight — difficulties that would later prompt detailed investigations not just into aviation systems but also federal oversight, accident litigation, and mechanical failure coverage under aviation insurance plans.
Ultimately, the plane ended up crashing into the Pacific Ocean, killing all 88 people, including 83 passengers, three cabin crew and two pilots, onboard. For families of the victims, wrongful death claims, medical examiner reports, and survivor benefit policies became part of their painful aftermath.
25 years on from the tragic ordeal and it is still one of the worst aviation disasters in modern US history — a case often referenced in air crash legal proceedings, transportation liability reviews, and aviation malpractice case studies.
With this in mind, the heartbreaking incident is still being talked about to this day and cockpit audio has recently resurfaced on social media,
