Crash of a Canadian Vickers Vedette off Santa Elena Island: 2 killed
Date & Time:
Jan 23, 1930 at 1645 LT
Registration:
5
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Puerto Montt - Puerto Aysén
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
2
Circumstances:
While cruising at an altitude of about 500 metres on a flight from Puerto Montt to Puerto Aysén, the crew encountered marginal weather conditions. Control was lost and the airplane crashed in the estuary of the Aysén River, off the Santa Elena Island. Commander Arturo Merino Benítez (First Commander-in-Chief of the Chilean Air Force), who was in Puerto Montt that day, initiated a SAR operation with his mechanic aboard the Junkers G24 registered J6 which had been fitted with floats at the base of Chamiza. Unfortunately, all operations were suspended after two days as no trace of the aircraft nor both occupants was found.
Crew:
Lt Aníbal Vidal Silva, pilot,
Cpl Alfredo Román Garay, mechanic.
Crew:
Lt Aníbal Vidal Silva, pilot,
Cpl Alfredo Román Garay, mechanic.
Probable cause:
Loss of control probably consecutive to intense gusts/downdrafts while approaching the Santa Elena Island which is permanently affected by storms and covered by banks of fog.
