ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 95815
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| Date: | Saturday 31 March 1945 |
| Time: | 11:21 |
| Type: |  Beechcraft AT-7C Navigator |
| Owner/operator: | United States Army Air Force (USAAF) |
| Registration: | 43-50099 |
| MSN: | 6473 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 5 / Occupants: 5 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | 3M W Axis, AL -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Alexandria Army Airfield, Louisiana |
| Tallahassee, Florida |
Crashed. to Bu51154.
On a navigational training flight from Texas to West Palm Beach, via Tallahassee, Florida, the aircrew encountered stormy clouds and dropped down below their assigned 5,000 foot flight course. A ground witness north of Mobile, Alabama observed the plane pass overhead at about 1,000 feet, in a direction to avoid low black clouds, with its engines sputtering. Moments later the sound of a crash was heard.
Rescue personnel did not locate the wreck in the thick trees near Axis, Alabama, until the following day. All five airmen aboard had perished. Investigators speculated the pilot had switched to an auxiliary fuel tank for training purposes, and while being distracted by the avoidance of the low clouds, forgot to switch back to the main fuel system, and when fuel starvation occurred, he was unable to restart the motors in time due to their low proximity to the ground and crashed.
The airmen killed were:
2nd Lt. Maurice M. Stimeling, O2059639, AL, Pilot
1st Lt. Alfred P. Akelaitis, O-432777, PA, Co-Pilot
1st Lt. E. Milton Adelman, O-707203, MA, Navigator
1st Lt. William P. Anton, O-796939, NH, Navigator
1st Lt. George W. Conly, O-698177, VT, Navigator
Sources:
http://www.aviationarchaeology.com/src/db.asp
Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945, Anthony J. Mireles
http://usaafdata.com/?q=search&page=1606&order=field..
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/45738707/maurice-myers-stimeling
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 03-Sep-2014 13:36 | A.J.Scholten | Updated [Cn, Narrative] |
| 15-Jul-2022 06:03 | Gumby778 | Updated [Time, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category] |
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