Accident description
Last updated: 23 May 2013
| Status: | |
| Date: | 08 FEB 1944 |
| Time: | 17:30 |
| Type: | Douglas C-47A-75-DL |
| Operator: | United States Army Air Force - USAAF |
| Registration: | 42-100873 |
| C/n / msn: | 19336 |
| First flight: | |
| Engines: | 2 Pratt & Whitney R-1830-92 |
| Crew: | Fatalities: 5 / Occupants: 5 |
| Passengers: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 0 |
| Total: | Fatalities: 5 / Occupants: 5 |
| Airplane damage: | Written off |
| Airplane fate: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
| Location: | 13 km (8.1 mls) W of Linton, TN (United States of America) |
| Phase: | En route (ENR) |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Fort Wayne Municipal Airport/Baer Field, IN (FWA/KFWA), United States of America |
| Atlanta-Candler Field, GA (ATL/KATL), United States of America |
The C-47A operated on a ferry flight from Baer Field to Atlanta. Weather at Atlanta had deteriorated and the crew were not able to land there. They diverted to Nashville, TN. The pilot was unabkle to find the airport and only had fuel left for about 45 minutes. After losing contact with the air traffic controller at Nashville, the pilot ordered the other crew members to secure their parachutes and prepare to bail out. Meanwhile he descended through clouds. The C-47 broke through the clouds and contacted terrain. The pilot pulled up abruptly but stalled the plane.
It fell off on a wing and struck the ground at a steep angle.
Events:
Sources:
» Aviation Archaeological Investigation and Research (AAIR)
» Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945, Vol. 2: July 1943-July 1944 / Anthony J. Mireles
Photos
Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Fort Wayne Municipal Airport/Baer Field, IN to Atlanta-Candler Field, GA as the crow flies is 813 km (508 miles).
Distance from Fort Wayne Municipal Airport/Baer Field, IN to Atlanta-Candler Field, GA as the crow flies is 813 km (508 miles).
This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.
