Douglas DC-3

The aircraft had departed Miami, Florida, at 1045 on June 9, 1950, for Kingston, Jamaica. It arrived at Kingston at 1512 and departed at 1545 on an instrument flight plan of four hours to cruise at 9,500 feet direct to .Maracaibo, Venezuela, with Barranquilla, Colombia, as an alternate. The flight plan was filed with Kingston ARTC personally by the copilot. There was sufficient fuel on board at departure from Kingston for a flight of approximately five hours and thirty minutes duration. Radio contacts were made with Kingston at 1558, 1658, and 1752. The 1752 message indicated the flight's position at 1745 as 14 degrees north latitude, altitude 9,500 feet, and the ETA at Maracaibo at 1915. No longitude was given. This position report to Kingston was intercepted by Balboa, Canal Zone, and relayed to Maracaibo. At 1802 Balboa sent a message to the flight advising it that the Maracaibo radio was already closed on FA (air to ground) and closing soon on FX (point to point). It was therefore suggested that Balboa be contacted to close the flight plan when the aircraft landed at Maracaibo. At 1852 the flight advised Balboa that it was "over the coast line at 5,000 feet and descending VFR." This was the last message received from the aircraft which never arrived at Maracaibo.

On touchdown, the right main gear failed. The aircraft veered off runway to the right, lost its right engine and came to rest. All three crew members were unhurt while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Crashed in unknown circumstances few minutes after its takeoff from Iloilo City. All four occupants were killed.

An undercarriage failed during takeoff roll. The aircraft went out of control, veered off runway and came to rest. There were no casualties.

While cruising by night, the crew did not realize he was flying too low and did not distinguish the mountain. At 0600LT, the twin engine aircraft hit the slope of Cerro del Borrego located near Orizaba. All 17 occupants were killed.

Capital Airlines Flight 500 originated in Memphis, Tenn., December 12, 1949, and proceeded in a routine manner to Norfolk, Va. No difficulties of any kind were experienced. At Norfolk a new crew consisting of Captain William J. Davis, Copilot Lloyd L. Porter, and Flight Attendant Joseph W. Buell were assigned to the flight for the remainder of the trip to Newport News, Va., and Washington, D. C. Before takeoff from Norfolk, Captain Davis studied all weather data in the Capital Airlines office, and called the company’s dispatcher in Washington who advised him that weather conditions would remain above landing limits until after midnight. Flight 500 took off from Norfolk at 1816; arrived at Newport News, Va., at 1836; and seven minutes later, at 1843, was again in the air en route to Washington by way of Richmond, Va., at a cruising altitude of 4,000 feet. On board were 20 passengers, the crew of three, 792 pounds of cargo and 3,000 pounds of fuel. Total aircraft weight was 25,472 pounds, which was 126 pounds in excess of the certificated aircraft weight. The load was distributed so that the center of gravity of the aircraft was within the certificated limits. The trip continued without incident. It reported over Richmond at 1910, and was then cleared by Air Route Traffic Control to proceed at 8,000 feet to the Clifton Intersection, which is 32 miles southwest of the Washington National Airport. By the time that the flight arrived over Clifton, however, ceiling and visibility at Washington were below landing minimums, so instructions were given to the flight to “hold.” Approximately 410 gallons of fuel remained on board, and weather conditions at the al-ternate airports of Richmond and Norfolk were remaining well above landing minimums. At 2025, a weather observer stationed at the south end of runway 36 at the National Airport reported that the ceiling was 400 feet variable, and that the visibility was 3/4 of a mile. Since landing minimums were now indicated, the control tower cleared one aircraft to land and the Capital flight to descend to 3,500 feet in the holding pattern. The air-craft which had been cleared to land completed its landing at 2033 without incident using the instrument landing system (ILS). At 2033 another runway observation was made, reporting the ceiling to be 400 feet variable, and the visibility 1 1/2 miles restricted by light rain and fog. Immediately following the transmission of this observation, clearance was given to Capital’s Flight 500 to descend to 1,500 feet and to commence its landing approach. Flight 500 acknowledged. Five minutes later, at 2038, the flight reported leaving the outer marker, five miles south of the end of runway 36, at which time it was cleared by the tower to land. From the holding pattern to the outer marker the aircraft was observed in the ground control approach (GCA) radar scopes which are in the Washington National Tower. Nothing unusual was noted. As the flight passed over the outer marker at 1,500 feet, entering its ILS approach, the GCA operator advised that the approach would be monitored. This message, as is customary, was not acknowledged, so it is not known whether either the pilot or the copilot was listening to GCA. In the GCA radar scopes, the flight path and descent at first appeared to be normal. When the aircraft was 4 1/2 miles from its point of landing, it was 200 feet to the right of the intended track, an extended center line of the runway, and the glide was good. When it was three miles from intended point of touchdown, it was 50 feet to the right and the glide was still good. When two miles out, the aircraft was on the center line, and only 25 feet above the glide path. One and one-half miles out, it was on the center line, and on the glide path. Then, the flight began to deviate to the right from the center line. The GCA operator in his monitoring conversation advised the flight that it was drifting sharply to the right, and followed by saying that it had gone 1,500 feet off course. The flight then appeared to turn left, proceeding back to the center line, but when within 1,000 feet of the center line and only 1/2 mile from the end of the runway, it disappeared entirely from the scopes. The aircraft was neither seen nor heard by any of the control tower operators, nor by the weather observer stationed at the end of runway 36. A few minutes after the accident, the runway observer reported the ceiling to be 400 feet variable and visibility to be 3/4 of a mile. There was light rain and fog, and the wind was from the south-southwest at nine miles per hour. The aircraft struck the water, left wing and nose first, in a steep nose down, left turning attitude. Both pilots and four passengers were killed. The aircraft was lost.

En route to Piedras Negras, the aircraft hit the slope of a mountain located in the Sierra de Ovallos, near Saltillo. All eight occupants were killed.

The pilot started the descent to Mexico City Airport when the aircraft hit the slope of Mt Popocatépetl, killing all 24 occupants.

The DC-3 was on a regularly scheduled flight en route from La Guardia Field, N Y., to Wilmington, Del., having originated at Boston, Mass., with Memphis, Tenn., as the destination. Takeoff from La Guardia was at 1000, with 12 revenue passengers and a fresh crew consisting of Captain L. R. Matthews, Pilot J. B. Simmons, and Flight Attendant Peter Gobleck. The aircraft was loaded within the prescribed limits for weight and location of center of gravity. The clearance was in accordance with Visual Flight Rules. The flight reported its position as over Freehold, N J., at 1017 and estimated arrival over Philadelphia, Pa., at 1037 and Wilmington, Del., at 1045. This was the last radio contact with the DC-3. The F-6-F-5 was en route from the Naval Air Station Anacostia, DC, to the Naval Air Station, Quonset Point R. I., on a training, or proficiency flight. Takeoff from Anacostia was at 0937 with the aircraft piloted by Lieutenant (j g) Robert V. Poe, USN. Clearance was in accordance with Visual Flight Rules, specifying a cruising speed of 160 knots (184 statute miles per hour) and an estimated time en route of two hours. There is no record of any position report or other radio contact from the F-6-F-5 after it was cleared for takeoff by the Anacostia tower. Weather conditions existing over the route of both aircraft were good. The visibility was 10 miles and there were scattered clouds at 12,000 feet. At about 1030 the F-6-F-5 was observed to perform acrobatics and to "buzz" a small civil aircraft in the neighborhood of Chesterfield, N. J. These maneuvers terminated in collision between the F-6-F-5 and the DC-3. Upon collision the fighter plane lost its left wing and the DC-3 lost the outer portion of its left wing. Both aircraft then fell in erratic paths, losing various parts while falling. The DC-3 burned when it struck the ground. The fighter's pilot was either seriously injured or killed at the time of the collision and was thrown clear of the aircraft during the descent. There was no indication that he attempted to use his parachute. The fighter did not burn on impact. All 16 occupants in both aircraft were killed.

The crew was forced to make an emergency landing in a field. The airplane crash landed near a location called Kolunda (?) and was written off. There were no casualties.