Aviation Accident Summary Archive

A British European Airways Vickers Viscount 802 crashed during a go-around at Nutts Corner Airport in low visibility, killing all seven people on board. The aircraft was on a non-scheduled positioning flight to collect the UK Minister of Supply. During the approach to Runway 28 from the east, the aircraft veered to the right of the centerline. The crew initiated a go-around less than 3/4 mile from the eastern threshold, but the aircraft subsequently struck the ground approximately 1,000 feet to the south of the western (up-wind) end of the runway. Despite an exhaustive public inquiry, no official cause for the crash was ever determined.

Unknown

Northeast Airlines Flight 285 crashed into the Apponagansett Swamp during an instrument approach to New Bedford Regional Airport, killing 12 of the 24 people on board. The aircraft descended significantly below the established ILS glide path while the pilots attempted to establish visual contact with the runway in thick fog. The Civil Aeronautics Board determined that the crew abandoned the instrument landing system (ILS) procedure prematurely to attempt a visual approach, leading to an unrecognized descent into trees approximately 4,000 feet short of the runway threshold.

Pilot Error

A Varig Super Constellation ditched in the Atlantic Ocean after suffering multiple engine failures during a ferry flight. The aircraft had previously lost engine No. 2 and was attempting to reach Miami for repairs when engine No. 4 suffered a catastrophic failure, damaging engine No. 3. One flight attendant was killed when the tail section detached during the water landing.

Engine Failure

A Douglas DC-4 charter flight carrying veterans and their families from London to Toronto crashed near Issoudun, Quebec, after encountering a severe thunderstorm. The aircraft entered a near-vertical dive from 6,000 feet due to extreme turbulence, killing all 79 people on board. At the time, it was the deadliest aviation accident in Canadian history.

Weather

KLM Flight 844 crashed into the sea shortly after a night takeoff from Biak-Mokmer Airport. After requesting that runway lights remain illuminated, the captain performed an unauthorized low-altitude turn over the airfield. During this maneuver, the aircraft gradually lost altitude until it struck the water and broke apart. The investigation could not definitively distinguish between pilot error and technical failure but strongly criticized the decision to perform low-altitude passes on scheduled passenger services.

Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT)

LOT Polish Airlines Flight 232 crashed during an instrument approach to Moscow Vnukovo Airport in severe weather, resulting in the deaths of nine of the 13 people on board. The investigation determined that the flight crew failed to follow the prescribed approach procedure for the airport, instead descending to an excessively low altitude. The aircraft struck the ground at high speed with engines operating at high power. Among the fatalities was the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia.

Pilot Error

A Vickers Viking 1B crashed into a wooded copse at Star Hill during an emergency return to Blackbushe Airport following a reported engine failure. The aircraft, chartered by the War Office to transport military personnel and their families to Libya, lost altitude while turning onto the final approach. The impact occurred approximately 1,200 yards from the runway, resulting in an explosion and fire that killed 34 of the 35 people on board.

Pilot Error

A Royal Air Force Vickers Valetta C.1 transport aircraft disintegrated in mid-air shortly after departing Aqaba, Jordan, killing all 27 personnel on board. The aircraft was transporting British Army troops to Iraq as part of the evacuation following the termination of the Anglo-Jordanian Treaty. Approximately seven minutes into the flight, the aircraft encountered extreme clear-air turbulence, which caused the port main spar to fail. The resulting structural failure led to the separation of the outer wing and the destruction of the aircraft. It remains the deadliest aviation accident in Jordanian history.

Structural Failure

A Varig Curtiss C-46 crashed during an emergency return to Bagé Airport after the pilot misidentified a wheel well fire as an engine fire, leading to a catastrophic structural failure. Shortly after takeoff, the pilot noticed what he believed was an incipient fire in the left engine. Unaware that the fire was actually located in the left main gear wheel well, the crew feathered the engine and followed standard engine-fire procedures, which failed to address the true source of the heat. During final approach, the landing gear failed to deploy due to thermal damage. The pilot initiated a go-around to avoid a belly landing, but the increased aerodynamic loads and intense heat caused the left wing to separate from the fuselage over the runway intersection, killing all 40 people on board.

In-flight Fire

On March 17, 1957, the Philippine presidential aircraft, a Douglas C-47 named Mt. Pinatubo, crashed into the slopes of Mount Manunggal shortly after departing Cebu City. The accident killed 26 of the 27 people on board (though Wikipedia cites 26 occupants and 25 fatalities), including the 7th President of the Philippines, Ramon Magsaysay. Investigation revealed that the aircraft suffered a sudden power failure when a spindle drive shaft in the right engine carburetor snapped due to metal fatigue. Unable to maintain sufficient altitude while climbing over the mountainous terrain of Balamban, the aircraft struck the mountainside and was destroyed by impact and fire. The sole survivor was Nestor Mata, a journalist who was thrown from the wreckage.

Mechanical Failure

British European Airways Flight 411 crashed into a residential area while on final approach to Manchester Airport, killing all 20 people on board and two residents on the ground. The aircraft, a Vickers Viscount, suffered a mechanical failure when a bolt securing the starboard flap unit snapped due to metal fatigue. This caused the flap to detach and foul the aileron cables, locking the flight controls and inducing an unrecoverable right-hand roll. The aircraft struck one house and the resulting fire destroyed a second home in the Wythenshawe housing estate.

Mechanical Failure

A Blackburn Beverley heavy transport aircraft crashed into the village of Sutton Wick while attempting an emergency return to RAF Abingdon, killing 18 occupants and two people on the ground. The accident was caused by fuel starvation to the port engines after a non-return valve was installed in reverse during maintenance. Shortly after takeoff, the crew shut down the No. 1 engine as a precaution; however, the No. 2 engine subsequently failed to respond to throttle inputs because the reversed valve blocked the fuel supply from the main port tank. The aircraft struck trees and cables before crashing into a farm and residential houses.

Human Factors (Maintenance)

Northeast Airlines Flight 823 crashed on Rikers Island approximately 60 seconds after taking off from LaGuardia Airport during a snowstorm. The aircraft, a Douglas DC-6A, entered instrument meteorological conditions immediately after lift-off and began an unintended left turn while descending. The captain failed to properly monitor his flight instruments, leading to spatial disorientation and a loss of control. The aircraft struck trees and skidded 1,500 feet across the island, resulting in a post-crash fire that killed 20 of the 101 people on board.

Pilot Error

A Douglas DC-7B on a functional test flight collided mid-air with a U.S. Air Force F-89J Scorpion fighter jet at 25,000 feet over the San Fernando Valley. The DC-7B spiraled into the playground of Pacoima Junior High School, killing all four crew members and three students on the ground. The F-89 pilot was killed when his aircraft crashed in La Tuna Canyon, while the radar operator successfully ejected. The accident resulted in 8 total fatalities: 5 occupants (4 on the DC-7B, 1 on the F-89) and 3 students on the ground. The disaster was attributed to the high closure rate of the two aircraft and the physiological limitations of the pilots to see and avoid each other during high-speed VFR operations.

Mid-air Collision · Multi-aircraft

American Airlines Flight 327, a Convair CV-240 named 'Flagship Mount Vernon', crashed into terrain during a night instrument approach to Tulsa Municipal Airport, resulting in one fatality and seven injuries among the nine survivors. The aircraft struck the ground approximately 3.6 miles north of the airport while descending in poor visibility. The crew had been on duty for 15 hours following maintenance delays earlier in the day. The investigation focused on a misunderstanding between the captain and the first officer regarding altimeter settings and target altitudes during the final descent.

Pilot Error

Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 810-9 crashed into the third peak of Mount Slesse after the crew shut down the number 2 engine due to a fire warning. While attempting to return to Vancouver, the aircraft encountered severe icing, turbulence, and mountain wave subsidence. For reasons that remain undetermined, the pilots deviated from their cleared airway and flew into high terrain. The aircraft impacted the mountain at high speed, likely due to a loss of control or a steep descent caused by the severe weather conditions and engine failure. The wreckage was so remote it was not discovered until five months later.

Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT)

A Linee Aeree Italiane Douglas DC-6B crashed into a residential area shortly after takeoff from Paris-Orly Airport, killing 34 of the 35 people on board. The aircraft, which was nearly new and on only its fourth flight, failed to maintain altitude after liftoff, striking two houses and an electricity cable before exploding. Despite a thorough investigation, the direct cause for the loss of altitude remains undetermined, though unmarked obstructions in the flight path were cited as an aggravating factor.

Unknown

A de Havilland Heron crashed into Hummelfjell mountain after encountering severe atmospheric icing and downdrafts that exceeded the capabilities of the aircraft's de-icing systems. The aircraft lost lift and altitude rapidly while flying through a blizzard, eventually striking the mountain tail-first at 1,350 meters above sea level. The captain was killed on impact, and one passenger died later from heart failure related to the stress of the accident. Ten survivors, including famous radio host Rolf Kirkvaag, endured a day in freezing conditions before being reached by rescuers.

Weather

Pan Am Flight 6 was a successful ditching in the Pacific Ocean after the failure of two engines during the final leg of a round-the-world flight originating in New York. While cruising at 21,000 feet after departing Honolulu, the number 1 engine suffered an overspeed condition that could not be corrected by feathering the propeller. The resulting drag forced a descent and increased fuel consumption. When the number 4 engine subsequently failed, the crew determined they had insufficient fuel to reach land. Captain Richard Ogg circled the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Pontchartrain at Ocean Station November until daylight to improve the chances of a successful water landing. All 31 passengers and crew were rescued by the Coast Guard shortly after the aircraft broke apart and sank.

Mechanical Failure

An Avro Vulcan B.1, the first delivered to the RAF, crashed short of the runway at London Heathrow during a Ground Controlled Approach (GCA) in heavy rain. The aircraft was returning from 'Tasman Flight', a high-profile 26,000-mile route proving and survey flight to Australia and New Zealand. During the final approach, the pilot descended below the glide path and struck the ground approximately 1,000 yards short of the runway, shearing off the undercarriage. The pilot and co-pilot successfully ejected after the aircraft bounced back into the air and became uncontrollable, but the four crew members in the rear, who were not equipped with ejection seats, were killed when the aircraft crashed.

Pilot Error

A Vickers Viscount suffered a catastrophic propeller separation after a bevel gear failure in the oil pump drive caused the No. 4 engine to lose lubrication and overspeed. During an emergency descent, the windmilling propeller broke loose from the engine hub. One of the four blades sliced through the forward passenger cabin, killing one passenger and injuring five others, while one crew member also sustained a minor head injury. The flight crew successfully performed an emergency landing at Windsor, Ontario, unaware until after touchdown that a blade had penetrated the fuselage and caused casualties.

Mechanical Failure

Two commercial airliners collided in uncontrolled airspace over the Grand Canyon, killing all 128 people on board. The accident occurred when United Flight 718, a Douglas DC-7, struck the tail of TWA Flight 2, a Lockheed Super Constellation, while both were flying 'off-airways' to provide passengers with a scenic view. The disaster, the first commercial crash to exceed 100 fatalities, exposed the dangerous inadequacies of the 'see and be seen' principle and the lack of a modern air traffic control system.

Pilot Error · Multi-aircraft

A BOAC Canadair C-4 Argonaut crashed shortly after takeoff from Kano Airport when it encountered an unpredictable thunderstorm cell. The aircraft reached an altitude of approximately 250 feet before encountering a sudden reversal of wind direction and heavy rain, causing a rapid loss of airspeed and height. Despite the application of full power, the aircraft descended until it struck a tree 1.5 miles from the runway, resulting in the deaths of 32 of the 45 people on board.

Weather

A Lockheed Super Constellation crashed into the Atlantic Ocean after a runaway propeller led to a catastrophic fire during an emergency fuel dump. The aircraft was returning to New York after the crew reported they were unable to feather the overspeeding number 2 propeller. While jettisoning fuel to reach a safe landing weight, the fuel ignited, causing a massive fireball and loss of control. All 74 people on board were killed in what was, for ten days, the deadliest disaster in commercial aviation history.

Mechanical Failure