Accident description
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| Status: | |
| Date: | 13 MAR 1975 |
| Type: | Boeing S.307B-1 Stratoliner |
| Operator: | Royal Air Lao |
| Registration: | XW-TFP |
| C/n / msn: | 1998 |
| First flight: | 1940 |
| Crew: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Passengers: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 0 |
| Total: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Airplane damage: | Written off |
| Airplane fate: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
| Location: | ? (Laos) |
| Phase: | Unknown (UNK) |
| Nature: | Cargo |
| Departure airport: | Hong Kong-Kai Tak International Airport (HKG/VHHH), Hong Kong |
| Vientiane-Wattay Airport (VTE/VLVT), Laos |
An aircraft was reported missing on this date while on a flight from Hong Kong to Vientiane. MacAlan Thompson reported that a Stratoliner was forced to carry out a controlled crash-landing in a river. Captain Jimmy Lieu and the copilot were held prisoner by the communist Pathet Lao for several months then released about May 1975.
Other sources claim Curtiss C-46 XW-PMF (or HS-SKD), c/n reported 22561, was reported missing in the same period on the same flight. Since Stratoliner XW-TFP was seen in the Mekong river, near the Laos-Thailand border in 1986, this is probably the aircraft that "disappeared".
Sources:
» AeroTransport Data Bank
» MacAlan Thompson
Statistics
7th loss of a Boeing S.307
4th worst accident involving a Boeing S.307 (at the time)
4th worst accident involving a Boeing S.307 (currently)
44th worst accident in Laos (at the time)
48th worst accident in Laos (currently) » figures explained
4th worst accident involving a Boeing S.307 (at the time)
4th worst accident involving a Boeing S.307 (currently)
44th worst accident in Laos (at the time)
48th worst accident in Laos (currently) » figures explained
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 Hong Kong-Kai Tak International Airport (HKG/VHHH) to Vientiane-Wattay Airport (VTE/VLVT) as the crow flies is 1298 km (811 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.
Distance from Hong Kong-Kai Tak International Airport (HKG/VHHH) to Vientiane-Wattay Airport (VTE/VLVT) as the crow flies is 1298 km (811 miles).
