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| Date: | Wednesday 12 January 1966 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  Martin B-57B Canberra |
| Owner/operator: | USAF - 13th Bombardment Squadron |
| Registration: | 53-3876 |
| MSN: | 210 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Da Nang AB, S. Vietnam -
 Vietnam
|
| Phase: | Take off |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Da Nang AB |
B-57B 53-3876 13 TBS, 405 FW attached to 6252 TFW, USAF, Da Nang, RVN
Maj Elijah Goar Tollett (KIA)
Capt Leon Boyd Smith (KIA)
During its take off from Da Nang for an armed reconnaissance mission, a Canberra crashed and exploded killing both the crew. The aircraft's nose wheel collapsed but the pilot managed to lift the nose and the aircraft staggered into the air. The pilot raised the undercarriage in an attempt to climb away but the aircraft settled back onto the runway and slid off onto soft earth. It eventually came to a halt several hundred feet from the runway and the crew jumped out. Tragically, before they could make their escape, one of the aircraft's 500lb bombs exploded killing both men and destroying the aircraft. The rest of the aircraft's ordnance detonated and it was over an hour before fire crews could get close to the wreck.
Sources:
"Vietnam Air Losses" by Chris Hobson - Midland Publishing - ISBN 1-85780-115-6 Page 47 - left column.
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 24-Aug-2013 08:26 | Uli Elch | Added |
| 24-Aug-2013 08:34 | Uli Elch | Updated [Date, Registration, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Location, Country, Phase, Departure airport, Narrative, ] |
| 14-Jan-2014 05:18 | Joe Connell | Updated [Date, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 22-Jun-2025 17:35 | phlamberts | Updated [Cn, Operator, ] |
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