Zone
Vaucluse

Crash of a Bloch MB.220 in Gigondas: 3 killed

Date & Time: Mar 3, 1940
Type of aircraft:
Bloch MB.220
Operator:
Registration:
F-AOHA
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Cargo
Survivors:
No
Site:
Mountains
Schedule:
Paris – Lyon – Marseille
MSN:
01
YOM:
1935
Location:
Gigondas
Vaucluse
Country:
France
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
3
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
3
Circumstances:
The crew was performing a cargo flight from Paris to Marseille with an intermediate stop in Lyon. While cruising in poor weather conditions over Vaucluse, the twin engine aircraft hit the slope of Mt Saint-Amand (730 metres high) located in the Dentelles Mountain Range overhanging Gigondas and its vineyards. All three occupants were killed.
Crew:
Georges Delage, pilot,
Jérôme Nicheletti, radio navigator,
Joseph Terrier, engineer.
Probable cause:
Controlled flight into terrain following a navigation error on part of the crew.

Crash of a Bloch MB.210 in Gigondas

Date & Time: Feb 26, 1940 at 2100 LT
Type of aircraft:
Bloch MB.210
Operator:
Registration:
E-851
Flight Phase:
Takeoff (climb)
Flight Type:
Training
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Plan de Dieu - Plan de Dieu
MSN:
178
YOM:
1939
Location:
Gigondas
Vaucluse
Country:
France
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
3
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
The airplane departed Plan de Dieu Airfield on a local night training flight. During initial climb, the left engine caught fire and a fire erupted in the cabin as well. The pilot elected to make an emergency landing when the airplane impacted trees and crashed against a rock wall located three km northeast of Gigondas. All three crew members were injured and the aircraft was destroyed.
Crew:
Sgt Geiger, pilot,
Sgt Hautisse, copilot,
Sgt Friocourt, mechanic.
Probable cause:
Engine fire during initial climb.
Subscribe to Gigondas