Accident Douglas DC-2-115E PH-AKG,

ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 342390

Date:	Saturday 20 July 1935
Time:	12:15
Type:	Douglas DC-2-115E
Owner/operator:	KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
Registration:	PH-AKG
MSN:	1335/F13
Year of manufacture:	1935
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 13 / Occupants: 13
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed, written off
Category:	Accident
Location:	Pian San Giacomo - Switzerland
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Passenger - Scheduled
Departure airport:	Milano (unknown airport)
Destination airport:	Frankfurt Rhein-Main Airport (FRA/EDDF)

Narrative:
The DC-2, named "Gaai" operated on a passenger service from Milan, Italy to Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The aircraft took off at 11:36 hours, bound for Frankfurt, Germany, which was the next planned stop.
Cruising at 5000 m altitude, ice accretion forced the crew to descend. At 3000 m the flight was out of icing conditions. However the aircraft was now flying between clouds shrouded mountains. Attempting to navigate visually, the flight continued at low altitude. Likely the crew entered the wrong mountain pass. They circled a valley, looking for a way out but low clouds and rain made it very difficult to continue flight.
The captain likely decided to perform a gear-up forced landing in the valley. Flaps were selected down and engine power was decreased. In a left hand turn the aircraft stalled and impacted the ground.
The four crew members and the nine passengers died.

Sources:

Opsomming van de bekende ongevallen en incidenten in 1935 / Herman Dekker
aviacrash.nl

Location

Images:

photo (c) ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Bildarchiv; Pian San Giacomo; July 1935; (CC:by-sa)