230 : On July 17 , 1996 , a Boeing 747-131 , TWA Flight 800 , carrying 212 passengers and 18 crew , exploded and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean near East Moriches , New York , shortly after departing from John F. Kennedy International Airport on a flight to Paris and Rome . A lengthy investigation concluded that the probable cause of the accident was a short circuit in a fuel tank that contained an explosive mixture of fuel vapor and air . As a result , new requirements were developed to prevent future fuel tank explosions in aircraft
TWA Flight 800
TWA Flight 800
Aviation accidents and incidents