Goose Bay

Icing conditions forced the crew to descend from 9,000 feet to get below the clouds. The twin engine aircraft struck an ice sheet at a speed of 180 knots at a height of 5,125 feet. Cloud base was reported to be 3,000 feet with a wind at 7 knots from 7° and 10 km visibility in moderate rain. All three crew members survived the accident and were picked up by the Danish Navy in a Lynx helicopter. The departure airport of the ferry flight was Springfield Airport, MO (SGF) and the final destination was going to be Southend Municipal Airport (SEN), UK.

While on a cargo flight from Nain to Goose Bay, the pilot reported problems to ATC and was cleared to descend from 7,500 to 3,500 feet. Shortly later, the aircraft entered an uncontrolled descent and stuck the ground in a 55° nose-down attitude some 51 southwest of Postville. The pilot, sole on board was killed. At the time of the accident, weather conditions were considered as good without any icing conditions or atmospheric turbulences.

The twin engine aircraft departed Sondreströmfjord on a charter flight to Goose Bay, carrying six sailors and two pilots. Seventeen minutes after takeoff, while cruising at FL220, the aircraft entered an uncontrolled descent and the crew did not send any distress call. At an altitude of 7,000 feet, the aircraft disintegrated and debris scattered on a wide area. The wreckage was found about 148 southwest of Sondreströmfjord and all eight occupants were killed.

Recently purchased by the Spanish operator Drenair, the aircraft departed West Palm Beach, Florida, on a delivery flight to Spain, carrying four passengers and two pilots. After a fuel stop in Bedford, Massachusetts, and Goose Bay, Newfoundland, the aircraft continued to Keflavik, Iceland. While approaching Keflavik, the crew declared an emergency due to fuel exhaustion, informed ATC about his position and ditched the aircraft approximately 70 km southwest of Keflavik. All six occupants were quickly rescued by the crew of a helicopter while the aircraft sank and was lost.

A wheel/ski-equipped DHC-3 Otter aircraft was on the return leg of a charter flight to Snegamook Lake to retrieve a hunting party of four, along with their hunting gear and bounty of several hundred ptarmigan. It departed Snegamook Lake at 09:15. After takeoff, the engine began to run rough but improved somewhat when the power was reduced for cruising. As the aircraft was approaching Nipishish Lake, the pilot reported to company dispatch that the engine was again running rough, but he was able to maintain altitude, and he would follow the Crooked River toward Goose Bay in case a precautionary landing became necessary. Three minutes later, C-FAGM called dispatch again, advising them that he was intending to land on a large area on the Crooked River. He also indicated that there was an odour of smoke in the aircraft. The aircraft was in a nose-down, left- bank attitude, with the flaps fully extended and the skis retracted when it struck the frozen surface of the river. The Otter bounced clear of the surface, turned left came to rest in an upright position.

The Twin Otter departed Goose Bay on a medical evacuation flight to St. Anthony. The flight was uneventful and landed in St. Anthony at 15:24. At 16:02, the aircraft departed St. Anthony on a VFR flight back to Goose Bay. On board were the two pilots and the doctor and nurse. Approaching the Goose Bay Airport, weather became marginal, but the crew continued visual flight. The crew likely encountered near zero forward visibility in snow showers and fog; it is probable that they were able to maintain vertical contact with the ground and were confident they could continue flight with visual reference to the ground. The crew may not have been able to see terrain ahead and therefore may not have been able to determine if the aircraft would clear the hills, particularly, when steep hills were encountered. The plane struck a rock outcropping 100 feet below the summit of a 2,050-foot mountain. After bouncing twice, the Twin Otter had come to rest in a small, wooded gully, approximately 350 feet from the initial point of impact.

While on a ferry flight from Goose Bay to Keflavik, the twin engine airplane crashed in unknown circumstances in the North Atlantic Ocean. Both occupants were killed.

The pilot, who had limited experience on Carvair aircraft, possibly wanted to touch down as early as possible on the short runway. The main wheels however struck the top of an embankment about 8 feet from the runway threshold. The pilot overshoot and had to feather the no. 2 prop immediately, because the engine was not developing power. The aircraft circled for a while and then touched down on its nosegear. The plane settled on the left wing and swung off the runway.

The aircraft was completing a transatlantic flight from Geneva to Goose Bay with an intermediate stop in Keflavik. On final approach to Goose Bay Airport, both engines failed simultaneously. The crew realized he could not reach the airport so the captain decided to attempt an emergency landing. The airplane belly landed, slid for several yards and came to rest 11 km short of runway. All seven occupants were rescued while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

The ill-fated aircraft that crashed was a Douglas C-133A Cargomaster s/n 56-2014 from Military Air Transport Service’s 1st Air Transport Squadron, based at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. It arrived at Goose Bay 01:55 hours local time. After a 15-hour crew rest, they proceeded to depart enroute to Thule Air Base, Greenland with a stop enroute at Sondrestrom Air Base, also in Greenland. They were loaded with meat and other provisions. The first departure attempt was delayed due to a technical issue. The aircraft sat for a period of time without being de-iced before making a second try. At between 120 and 150 feet, the aircraft’s starboard (right) wing suddenly dropped 20 to 30 degrees. The aircraft commander managed to momentarily regain a level attitude. The aircraft then rolled to the left. The port wing dropped even more quickly and was almost vertical. The aircraft commander was unable to do anything. At 16:49 hrs local time, the Cargomaster struck the ground in a left wing down, nose high attitude.
Crew:
1st Lieutenant Guy L. Vassalotti, pilot,
Cpt Charles L. Jenkins, copilot,
Maj Frank X. Hearty, copilot,
1st Lt Douglas H. Brookfield, navigator,
T/Sgt John. A. Kitchens, flight engineer,
T/Sgt Norman H. Baron, flight engineer,
A1c Shelton Toler, loadmaster.