ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 174695
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| Date: | Friday 15 November 1957 |
| Time: | 18:22 LT |
| Type: |  Boeing TB-29 Superfortress |
| Owner/operator: | 5040th RESqn USAF |
| Registration: | 44-70039 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 6 / Occupants: 10 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Hatcher Pass, Susitna Valley, 39 miles SE of Talkeetna, Alaska -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Elmendorf AB, Alaska |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
The aircraft, a trainer conversion of a B-29 four-engine bomber, and its crew were with the 5040th Radar Evaluation Squadron based at Elmendorf Air Force Base at Anchorage. On this day, they were on a routine radar-calibration training mission that was to last about 10 hours. Flying south down the Susitna Valley in bad weather, however, they strayed 27 miles off course into the Talkeetna Mountains, and at 6:22 p.m., crashed into an unnamed glacier at 5,600 feet elevation about 39 miles southeast of Talkeetna, just north-east of Hatcher Pass.
Six crew members were killed in the crash:
Major Robert A. Butler
Captain Richard O. Seaman
Captain Erwin Stolfich
Captain Edward A. Valiant
1st Lieutenant William J. Schreffler
Airman Basic James R. Roberson
Staff Sergeant Calvin K. Campbell was credited with saving the lives of the three other survivors:
Staff Sergeant Robert J. McMurray
Technical Sergeant Manuel Garza
1st Lieutenant Claire W. Johnson
In spite of this own injuries, Staff Sergeant Campbell sought out his fellow crewmen and carried those who could be moved to shelter. He wrapped the men in parachutes and sleeping bags to protect them from the storm until rescuers arrived. As a result of his actions, Staff Sergeant Campbell received the Soldiers Medal, the highest possible award for valor in a non-combat situation.
Lieutenant Jack A. Wolf, flying a Grumman SA-16 Albatross amphibian, was the first to spot the downed aircraft. Captain Melvin Swendels and 1st Lieutenant Thomas Seebo piloted the Piasecki SH-21 Workhorse search-and-rescue helicopters from 10th Air Rescue Group that rescued the survivors. An artist's conception of that rescue can be seen
Sources:
1. El Litoral 16 November 1957, p1
2. http://ufdc.ufl.edu/AA00010883/02406/4j
3. http://www.explorenorth.com/library/aviation/images/ak_veterans_memorial-1957_tb29_crash-9857.html
4. http://www.joebaugher.com/usaf_serials/1944_4.html
5. http://www.explorenorth.com/library/aviation/1957_tb29_crash.html
6. https://pacaeropress.websitetoolbox.com/post/b29-wreck-on-bomber-glacier-5197435
Media:
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 20-Mar-2015 11:56 | TB | Added |
| 10-Dec-2015 18:49 | TB | Updated [Phase, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 31-May-2017 14:12 | gerard57 | Updated [Registration, Total fatalities, Location, Source, Narrative] |
| 31-May-2017 23:43 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Registration, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative] |
| 11-Feb-2019 16:48 | stehlik49 | Updated [Operator] |
| 03-Dec-2020 18:34 | Awat | Updated [Country, Source] |
| 03-Dec-2020 18:34 | harro | Updated [Country] |
| 03-Mar-2021 20:52 | Anon. | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
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