Status: | Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Date: | Saturday 27 January 1951 |
Time: | 14:40 |
Type: | Savoia-Marchetti SM-95B |
Operator: | Alitalia |
Registration: | I-DALO |
MSN: | 10 |
First flight: | 1948 |
Crew: | Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 5 |
Passengers: | Fatalities: 10 / Occupants: 12 |
Total: | Fatalities: 14 / Occupants: 17 |
Aircraft damage: | Damaged beyond repair |
Location: | 8 km (5 mls) N of Civitavecchia ( Italy)
|
Phase: | Approach (APR) |
Nature: | International Scheduled Passenger |
Departure airport: | Paris-Le Bourget Airport (LBG/LFPB), France |
Destination airport: | Roma-Ciampino Airport (CIA/LIRA), Italy |
Narrative:The SM-95B aircraft named "Ugolino Vivaldi" departed Paris at 10:16 for a flight to Rome. At 14:36 the crew reported over the Civitavecchia beacon at 6500 feet. A few minutes later, the aircraft was then seen descending in flames rapidly. The plane banked to the left heavily and crashed. The same aircraft on the same route with the same pilot on board had experienced a similar accident on 17 May 1949 near Lyon and had made a successful emergency landing at Lyon Airport with a two-meter right wing tip section missing.
Probable Cause:
PROBABLE CAUSE: "Fire in flight, due to lightning striking the wing frame of the aircraft and igniting a mixture of air and petrol fumes in one of the wing panels or fuel tanks."
Classification:
Lightningstrike
Inflight fire
Loss of control
Sources:
» ICAO Aircraft Accident Digest No.2, Circular 24-AN/21 (55-58)
» 1945-1960 I trasporti aerei in Italia dalla guerra all'era del getto / Paolo Gianvanni
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 Paris-Le Bourget Airport to Roma-Ciampino Airport as the crow flies is 1115 km (697 miles).
Accident location: Global; accuracy within tens or hundreds of kilometers.
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.