Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes in Fernhill, West Sussex, UK, while on approach to Gatwick Airport, killing 50 people.

Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 was involved in an aviation accident on January 5, 1969. The incident involved a Boeing 727 aircraft, carrying 62 individuals, which crashed into a residential property during its approach to London Gatwick Airport amidst heavy fog. The accident was primarily attributed to pilot error, specifically the failure to extend the flaps to maintain flight at the final approach speed.

Fernhill is a hamlet close to Gatwick Airport in West Sussex, England. Its fields and farmhouses formerly straddled the county boundary between Surrey and West Sussex, but since 1990 the whole area has been part of the county of West Sussex and the borough of Crawley. Fernhill is bounded on three sides by motorways and the airport. A fatal aeroplane crash occurred here in 1969.

Gatwick Airport, also known as London Gatwick Airport, is the secondary international airport serving London, Sussex and Surrey. It is located near Crawley in West Sussex, 30 miles (48 km) south of Central London. In 2024, Gatwick was the second-busiest airport by total passenger traffic in the UK, after Heathrow Airport, and was the 10th-busiest in Europe by total passenger traffic. It covers a total area of 674 hectares.

January 5 is the fifth day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 360 days remain until the end of the year.