Notable aviation disasters in the 1990s included TWA Flight 800 crashing off the coast of Long Island , en route to Paris , France , on July 17 , 1996 due to an explosion of the fuel tank , killing 230 and EgyptAir Flight 990 crashing south of Nantucket , Massachusetts , en route to Cairo , Egypt , on October 31 , 1999 due to deliberate crashing by the first officer , killing 217 . Shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks , the second-deadliest U.S. aviation incident occurred when American Airlines Flight 587 crashed in Queens , New York , en route to the Dominican Republic , on November 12 , 2001 due to overuse of rudder controls by the pilot to counteract turbulence , killing 265 ( including 5 on the ground )
TWA Flight 800
TWA Flight 800
History of the United States (1991–2008)