The aircraft was transporting the first-team squad of Brazilian football club Chapecoense and their entourage from Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, to Medellín, where the team was scheduled to play at the 2016 Copa Sudamericana Finals.

The official report from Colombia's civil aviation agency, Aerocivil, found the causes of the crash to be fuel exhaustion due to an inappropriate flight plan by the airline, and pilot error regarding poor decision-making as the situation worsened, including a failure to declare an emergency for 36 minutes after fuel levels became critically low, thus failing to inform air traffic control at Medellín – until just seconds before its fuel-starved engines flamed out, and 18 kilometres (9.7 nmi; 11 mi) from the airport – that an immediate landing was required.

[3] The captain was 36-year-old Miguel Alejandro Quiroga Murakami, who was a former Bolivian Air Force (FAB) pilot and had previously flown for EcoJet, which also operated the Avro RJ85.

[8][9] The aircraft was carrying 73 passengers and four crew members[10]: 3  on a flight from Viru Viru International Airport, in the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, to José María Córdova International Airport, serving Medellín in Colombia, and located in nearby Rionegro.

[13] Chapecoense's initial request to charter LaMia for the whole journey from São Paulo to Medellín was refused by the National Civil Aviation Agency of Brazil because the limited scope of freedom of the air agreements between the two countries, under International Civil Aviation Organization rules, would have required the use of a Brazilian or Colombian airline for such a service.

[21][22] A Chapecoense team member's request to have a video game retrieved from his luggage in the aircraft's cargo delayed departure.

[5]: 90  ICAO regulations would have required them to carry a total fuel load of 12,052 kg, to allow for holding, diversion, and other contingencies.

[26] Another aircraft had diverted to Medellín from its planned route (from Bogotá to San Andres) because of a suspected fuel leak.

[26][10]: 4–5  The crew requested and were given authorisation to hold at an RNAV waypoint named GEMLI, about 5.4 nautical miles (10 km; 6 mi) south of the Rionegro VOR.

[27] At 21:49, the crew requested priority for landing because of unspecified "problems with fuel", and were told to expect an approach clearance in "approximately seven minutes".

[28][29] An air traffic controller radioed that the aircraft was 0.1 nautical miles (190 m; 200 yd) from the Rionegro VOR, but its altitude data were no longer being received.

[2] Air traffic control radar stopped detecting the aircraft at 21:55 local time as it descended among the mountains south of the airport.

[43] For unknown reasons, the CVR stopped recording an hour and forty minutes before the FDR, when the aircraft was still about 550 nautical miles (1,020 km; 630 mi) away from the crash site at the Rionegro VOR.

[10]: 15  Aviation analyst John Nance and GRIAA investigators Julian Echeverri and Miguel Camacho would later suggest that the most probable explanation is that the flight's captain, who was also a part-owner of LaMia, pulled the circuit breaker on the CVR to prevent a record of the subsequent discussions, knowing that the flight did not have the appropriate fuel load.

[failed verification] A week after the crash, Bolivian police detained the general director of LaMia on various charges, including involuntary manslaughter.

A prosecutor involved with the case told reporters that "the prosecution has collected statements and evidence showing the participation of the accused in the crimes of misusing influence, conduct incompatible with public office and a breach of duties.

[24][51] She fled the country seeking political asylum in Brazil, claiming that after the crash she had been pressured by her superiors to alter a report she had made before the aircraft took off and that she feared that Bolivia would not give her a fair trial.

[57][needs update] Brazilian President Michel Temer declared three days of national mourning and requested that personnel from Brazil's embassy to Colombia in Bogotá be moved to Medellín to better assist the survivors and the families of the victims.

[66] The Brazilian team received the winner's prize money (US $2 million) and was awarded qualification to the 2017 Copa Libertadores, 2017 Recopa Sudamericana against Atlético Nacional and the 2017 Suruga Bank Championship against J1 League champions Urawa Red Diamonds.

[68] FIFA president Gianni Infantino gave a speech at Arena Condá, Chapecoense's stadium, at a public memorial.

A committee representing FIFA at the service was composed of former football legends Clarence Seedorf and Carles Puyol; and Real Madrid player Lucas Silva.

[74] The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) encouraged Chapecoense to play its next scheduled Campeonato Brasileiro Série A game against Clube Atlético Mineiro, part of the final round of the tournament, as a tribute to the players.

[78] In Colombia, a four-hour tribute took place at Atlético Nacional's stadium at the time Chapecoense's scheduled match would have kicked off.

[82] Avianca, Colombia's flag carrier and largest airline, provided 44 psychologists to help in the counseling of the families of the victims.

[94] Brazilian radio personality Rafael Henzel, who was a passenger on the flight and the only journalist to survive, later died on 26 March 2019 from a heart attack.

The episode focused on how one of the pilots was also a co-owner of the airline company and the effects on the survivors and on family members of the people killed in the accident.