Aaliyah died in a plane crash on August 25, 2001, in the Bahamas. She was aboard a small twin-engine Cessna 402B that crashed shortly after takeoff from Marsh Harbour Airport. The aircraft was overloaded by about 700 to 900 pounds and had one more passenger than it was certified to carry. The pilot, Luis Morales III, was not authorized to fly the plane and had traces of cocaine and alcohol in his system. The plane crashed about 200 feet from the runway, breaking apart on impact, and caught fire. Aaliyah and five others on board were killed instantly, while three others died shortly after. The official cause of Aaliyah's death included severe burns and a blow to the head, and she went into such severe shock that survival and recovery would have been nearly impossible even if she had initially survived the crash. The crash investigation highlighted the plane's overloading, improper weight distribution, and pilot misconduct as contributing factors
. Additionally, a later account suggested that Aaliyah was reluctant to board the plane and may have been sedated and carried onto it unconscious, though this detail comes from a new book and is not part of the official investigation
