Investigation Summary
The flight was a scheduled international service from Madrid to Havana, having already completed a leg to Santa Maria in the Azores before arriving in Bermuda at 03:30 local time. After a routine refueling stop, the aircraft departed Kindley Air Force Base at 04:45. According to Bermuda's Director of Civil Aviation, the takeoff run appeared normal. However, while the aircraft was likely still at high power settings to gain altitude, it suffered a catastrophic event. Witnesses reported seeing an explosion before the DC-4 hit the water roughly 4.5 kilometers northeast of the airfield. The aircraft stayed afloat long enough for rescue teams to reach seven people, but the high fatality rate and lack of recoverable evidence from the seabed at the time left investigators without a definitive cause. There is a discrepancy in historical records regarding the exact number of people on board; while Aviation Safety Network records 41 occupants (37 fatalities), Wikipedia and contemporary news reports specify 42 occupants (34 passengers and 8 crew) with 38 fatalities, noting that four people—three passengers and one crew member—ultimately survived.
Final Conclusions
The official investigation was unable to establish the cause of the crash. While an explosion was reported by witnesses, the lack of flight data recorders (which were not in use at the time) and the difficulty of recovering wreckage from the ocean meant that investigators could not determine if the explosion was the primary cause or a result of the impact. The accident remains the deadliest aviation disaster in Bermudian history. Discrepancies exist in the final toll, with reports varying between 37 and 38 fatalities depending on whether all three initial survivors who later died were included in the final count.
Video Analysis
No video analysis linked for this case file yet.
Airframe & Maintenance
Systems & Failure Modes
Engines
The aircraft was believed to be at high power settings for climb when the accident occurred.
Interesting Facts
- 01The aircraft was named 'Star of the East'.
- 02It remains the worst aviation accident in the history of Bermuda.
- 03The aircraft was a Douglas DC-4 manufactured in 1944, serial number (MSN) 10319.
- 04Cubana de Aviación was a subsidiary of Pan American World Airways at the time of the accident.
- 05The crash occurred approximately 4.5 kilometers northeast of Kindley Field.