Icing conditions existed at the time and 15 minutes after takeoff, while climbing through FL147 (14,700 feet (4,500 m)) in IAS hold mode (constant speed set at 133 knots (246 km/h; 153 mph)) the aircraft rolled left and right before crashing nose down into a 700-metre-high (2,300 ft) mountain following an uncontrolled descent.

Flight 460 took off from Milan-Linate airport at 7.13 pm, 53 minutes later than scheduled due to traffic and poor weather conditions.

[1][2] The aircraft involved in the accident was an Aerospatiale ATR 42-312, serial number 046, registered as I-ATRH and named "Città di Verona".

[7] Local eye-witness reports suggested that the aircraft had crashed into a mountain in the Mount Crezzo area of the alps, near Lake Como and the towns of Magreglio and Barni.

Instead, some of their maneuvers to regain speed, likely combined with poor management of the trim, led the plane to point towards the ground until it crashed into the mountain.

[12] An investigation of the judiciary led to a trial that saw the designer of the ATR 42 aircraft, Jean Rech, and three senior executives of ATI convicted for manslaughter.