Civil aviation official Carlos Padilla said the aircraft suddenly veered, “made a sharp turn to the right of the runway and fell into the water” just moments after takeoff from Roatan Island, Honduras.

The violent maneuver gave pilots and passengers almost no time to react, turning a short flight into a fatal plunge.

A local fisherman who watched the disaster unfold said he narrowly avoided being struck as the plane smashed into the sea beside his boat.

Roatan Fire captain Franklin Borjas described the desperate struggle to reach the victims, explaining that jagged rocks stretch for about 30 meters, making it impossible to approach the crash site on foot or by swimming. As waves battered the shoreline and light faded, rescuers fought both the ocean and the clock, piecing together the last moments of a flight that should have been routine but ended in unimaginable loss.