ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 97424
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| Date: | Wednesday 3 March 1943 |
| Time: | 12:30 |
| Type: |  Boeing B-17F Flying Fortress |
| Owner/operator: | United States Army Air Force (USAAF) |
| Registration: | 42-9565 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 9 / Occupants: 9 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Approx 20 Mi SW Springerville, AZ (Burro Mtns) -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Tucson, Arizona |
| Columbus, Ohio |
Crashed into Burro Mountain while flying in a snowstorm. The subject aircraft was conducting a cross-country navigational training flight that had taken it from Lockbourne airfield, near Columbus, Ohio, to Portland, Oregon. The flight then continued to Las Vegas, Nevada, then onwards to Tucson, Arizona. The course was then to return to Lockbourne. The flight went missing. The wreck site was finally discovered on July 12, 1943. The bomber had been off course and crashed into timber on a mountainside, at about the 9,500 foot elevation level, in the Burro Mountains of the White Mountain Range, about 20 miles southwest of Springerville, Arizona. The aircraft was completely destroyed by fire. Investigators believed that the pilots, unaware they were off course, had let down over high terrain attempting to obtain better visuals during stormy weather. All nine aboard perished:
Capt. Keith N. Busch, O-401382, OR, Pilot
Capt. Rex K. Latham, O-427450, IL, Co-Pilot
Capt. Lynn L. Motley, O-423794, TX, Co-Pilot
1st Lt. Darwin H Pfaender, O-429164, MN, Co-Pilot
1st Lt. William H. Startzer, O-428870, NE, Co-Pilot
T/Sgt. Clyde L. Miller, 14001716, MS, Flight Engineer
Sgt. William R. Appleby, Jr., 19002749, CA, Asst. Engineer
PFC Charles E. Arthur, 17044635, MO, Radio Operator
Pvt. Geronimo Medina, 38250151, TX, Passenger
U.S. Senator Harry S. Truman (D-Missouri) inquired on behalf of the family of PFC Arthur to the progress of the search. Because the flight was so far off course, the aircraft was not located for more than four months.
Sources:
http://www.aviationarchaeology.com/src/db.asp
https://www.honorstates.org/index.php?id=440966
http://usaafdata.com/?q=search&page=1606&order=field..
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/103775773/darwin-h-pfaender
Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945, Anthony J. Mireles
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 06-Oct-2021 12:23 | Cobar | Updated [Registration, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 01-Aug-2022 19:01 | Gumby778 | Updated [Time, Registration, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category] |
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