All World

Named 'Croix du Sud', the aircraft was performing its 25th cross Atlantic flight from France to South America. The trip was officially from Marseille to Rio de Janeiro with two intermediate stops in Dakar and Natal. Less than one hour after it left Dakar, the crew confirmed by radio he was encountering a technical problem with the rear right engine and that he was returning to Dakar. Several controls were made on this engine but an oil leak was detected and the engine must be changed. As no spare engine was available, the crew made a complete thorough cleaning and took off again from Dakar at 0643LT. Four hours later, the radio navigator sent a brief message 'we shut down the rear right engine'. This was the last message received by ground. Important SAR operations were initiated but no trace of the aircraft nor the five crew members was ever found. Among the crew was the famous French aviator and pioneer Jean Mermoz.
Crew:
Jean Mermoz, pilot,
Alexandre Pichodou, copilot,
Edgar Cruveilher, radio navigator,
Jean Lavidalie, engineer,
Henri Ezan, navigator.

The pilot departed Floyd Bennett Field Airport in New York on a transatlantic solo flight to Stockholm-Bromma. While over the North Atlantic and approaching the Irish coast, the airplane suffered an engine failure. The pilot ditch the airplane and was later rescued by the crew of a French trawler. The aircraft sank and was lost.

While returning from Darwin to Croydon and flying over the Timor Sea, the crew made several navigation errors and eventually decided to ditch the airplane in the Seringapatam Reef. The airplane came to rest into the lagoon located some 300 km off Cape Leveque, Western Australia. All four occupants were rescued by local fishermen while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair and abandoned on site.

While overflying the Mediterranean Sea, the crew encountered engine problems and was forced to ditch the aircraft some 80 km off Algiers. The aircraft landed smoothly and the crew sent a mayday message, reporting his position. Four hours later, the crew of the ship named 'El Biar' arrived on scene and was able to evacuate seven people. Unfortunately, a passenger, Mr. Bergerot (senator and businessmen in Algiers) drowned. The four engine aircraft (two push-pull engines) named 'Ville de Nice' was later towed by the French tugboat named 'Colonel Casse' but sank and was lost.
Crew:
Laurent Guerrero, pilot +3.

The crew was performing a mail flight from Rio de Janeiro to Berlin with several intermediate stops. The float plane named 'Tornado' was catapulted from the deck of the German ship named 'Westphalen' in the region of Fernando de Noronha around 18:18 (GMT time) on February 14, 1936. Some 9 hours and 34 minutes later, all communications with the crew were cut. SAR operations were conducted by seven countries but no trace of the aircraft nor the crew was ever found. According to the authorities, the crew was flying at a speed of some 200 km/h and some 3 to 5 metres above the water surface when the accident occurred.
Crew:
FF Olaf Bielenstein,
FF Otto Scheffler,
Bm Wilehlm Wittmann,
Bf Alfred Conrad.

The float plane named 'Ville de Buenos Aires' disappeared over the Atlantic Ocean while en route from Dakar to Natal. The crew sent a message around 1100 (Natal time) reporting he was flying in a stormy weather but that all was OK on board. This was the last message. No trace of the aircraft nor the occupant was ever found.
Crew:
Jean Ponce, pilot,
André Parayre, copilot,
Frédéric Marret, radio navigator,
Alexandre Collenot, engineer,
Jean Lhôtellier, navigator.
Passenger:
Émile Barrière, Director of Air France for South America.

En route from Tallinn to Helsinki, while cruising over the Gulf of Finland, the crew encountered poor weather conditions and low visibility due to fog. The pilot reduced his altitude, most probably to maintain a visual contact with the water surface when the airplane named 'Papagei' hit a wave and crashed into the sea. All six occupants were killed.

The seaplane departed Barcelona at 0700LT on a flight to Rome with intermediate stops in Marseille and Genoa, carrying eight passengers and a crew of four. About an hour into the flight, the crew encountered engine problems and the captain ditched the airplane in the Mediterranean Sea. After several mayday messages were send, three ships rerouted to the accident site. All 12 occupants were evacuated safely by the crew of the French ship named 'Almansour'. The airplane was abandoned and washed up on a beach of the north coast of the Minorca Island on July 23.

The crew was attempting a new record over the Pacific Ocean on a flight from Vancouver to Melbourne with intermediate stops in San Francisco, Oakland and Honolulu. En route to Hawaii, the crew encountered poor weather conditions. Due to low visibility, he was unable to localize the islands and sent several radio messages advising he was lost and running out of fuel. The aircraft named 'Stella Australis' eventually crashed into the ocean around 1000LT. Despite an extensive and immediate search by aircraft and 23 naval ships, no trace of the Envoy nor the crew was ever found. Captain Ulm had chosen not to carry a life raft on board, preferring to save weight and predicting the aircraft would float for two days if it were forced to land on water.
Crew:
Charles T. P. Ulm, pilot,
G. M. Littlejohn, copilot,
J. S. Skilling, radio navigator.

The float plane departed Athens at 1510LT on a schedule service to Rhodes. The crew reported his position every 10 minutes but radio contact was lost some 30 minutes into the flight. SAR operations were initiated by Greek and Italian Authorities but eventually suspended as no trace of the aircraft nor the six occupants was ever found.