Date & Time:
Apr 22, 1960 at 0755 LT
Type of aircraft:
Douglas C-54 Skymaster
Operator:
Registration:
OO-SBL
Flight Phase:
Landing (descent or approach)
Flight Type:
Charter/Taxi (Non Scheduled Revenue Flight)
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Brussels – Rome – Cairo – Bunia – Stanleyville – Elisabethville
MSN:
3099
YOM:
1943
Country:
Democratic Republic of Congo
Region:
Africa
Crew on board:
7
Crew fatalities:
7
Pax on board:
28
Pax fatalities:
28
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
35
Circumstances:
Following an uneventful flight from Cairo, the crew started the descent to Bunia in marginal weather conditions. In limited visibility due to low clouds, the pilot-in-command continued the approach at an insufficient altitude when the four engine aircraft struck the slope of the Bogoro Peak located about 8 km short of runway. The wreckage was found 60 meters below the summit and all 35 occupants have been killed.
Probable cause:
The accident occurred because the pilot, the captain, carried out a descent while the height of cloud base (ceiling) was below the minimum required by the Administration and the Operator.
