10 killed in Bahamas plane crash near North Andros

Ten people died when a Flamingo Air small plane crashed just west of San Andros Airport in North Andros, ending a short inter-island flight from Nassau. The aircraft had left Lynden Pindling International Airport and was headed to San Andros on July 10, The Bahamas’ Independence Day.

Police in Nicholls Town received reports just before 2 p.m. that a small aircraft had gone down near the airport on Andros. Bahamian Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis initially said one person had survived, then later confirmed that the survivor died from injuries, bringing the final death toll to 10. The plane had carried 10 people total.

The Bahamian government temporarily grounded Flamingo Air flights after the crash. The Civil Aviation Authority Bahamas also suspended the airline’s Air Operator Certificate as a precautionary safety measure, while investigators examined the wreckage and the airline’s operations. The authority’s Certification Department handles Air Operator Certificate oversight, and official registers maintain the records for Bahamian operators.

The flight was a short one, described as about a 20-minute journey between islands. In a country built around air links between the capital and the outer islands, that kind of trip is routine and essential, especially for communities that depend on small carriers to move people, supplies, and business travelers across the archipelago. That makes the safety and oversight of regional operators a central issue, not a side note.

The crash came as The Bahamas marked its 53rd year of independence, turning a national holiday into a day of mourning. For travelers who use island-hopping routes through Nassau and beyond, the investigation now carries consequences that reach well past Andros: it will test how one of the region’s most important transport systems is supervised when a routine hop ends in disaster.