Mediterranean Sea

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Site:

Handley Page H.P.67 Hastings

Schedule:

Tripoli – Athens

MSN:

14029/25474

YOM:

1944

Location:

Country:

Region:

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Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

Enroute from Tripoli to Athens, the crew encountered engine problems and elected to ditch the aircraft 145 km north of the Libyan coast. About 15 minutes after the emergency landing, the crew of a USN SA-16 Albatross was able to evacuate all 18 occupants safely. Later, the C-47 sank and was lost. The crew was performing a flight from Mitiga Airfield to Hassani Airport in Athens.

Probable cause:

Engine failure.

Crash of a Handley Page H.P.67 Hastings C.1 into the Mediterranean Sea

Date & Time: Jul 22, 1953

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

TG613

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Site:

Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3)

Schedule:

Tripoli – Habbaniya

MSN:

YOM:

1949

Location:

Country:

Region:

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Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

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Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The aircraft was on its way to Habbaniya and departed Tripoli-Idris Airport with few passengers and a crew of six on board. About 90 minutes into the flight, three engines failed simultaneously. The pilot reduced his altitude and ditched the aircraft 224 km off Benghazi. All occupants were quickly rescued while the aircraft sank and was lost.

Probable cause:

It is believed that the triple engine failure was caused by an technical issue on the hydraulic system.

Crash of a Douglas C-47A-10-DK into the Mediterranean Sea

Date & Time: Jul 27, 1952

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Tropic Airways

Registration:

ZS-DFB

Flight Phase:

Charter/Taxi (Non Scheduled Revenue Flight)

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Amsterdam – Luqa – Benghazi – Johannesburg

MSN:

12414

YOM:

1944

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

On the leg from Luqa to Benghazi and while flying over the Mediterranean Sea, an engine failed. The crew reduced his altitude and attempted to ditch the aircraft about 160 km northwest of Benghazi. All 32 occupants were rescued by the crew of a USN Albatross and transferred on a Royal Navy ship. The aircraft sank and was lost.

Probable cause:

Engine failure.

Crash of an Avro 683 Lancaster GR.3 into the Mediterranean Sea: 2 killed

Date & Time: Jan 23, 1952

Type of aircraft:

Avro 683 Lancaster

Operator:

Registration:

RF210

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Training

Survivors:

Site:

Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3)

Schedule:

Luqa - Luqa

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The aircraft was engaged in an exercice in the Mediterranean Sea, carrying six crew members and one passenger (a photographer) on behalf of the 203rd Squadron. While simulating an aerial attack of a submarine, the pilot-in-command completed a last turn to reach the target when the right wing broke off. Out of control, the airplane crashed into the sea. Five crew members were rescued while a sixth and the passenger were killed.

Probable cause:

It is believed that the right wing failed following a structural issue.

Crash of a Douglas C-47B-30-DK into the Mediterranean Sea

Date & Time: Jul 20, 1948

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

476561

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Site:

Société de Transports Aériens - STA

Schedule:

Algiers – Istres

MSN:

16145/32893

YOM:

1945

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The crew was forced to ditch the aircraft into the Mediterranean Sea some 130 km south of Marseille. All twenty occupants were rescued while the aircraft sank and was lost.

Crash of an AAC.1 Toucan off Perpignan: 4 killed

Date & Time: Mar 2, 1948

Type of aircraft:

AAC.1 Toucan

Operator:

Registration:

F-BBYC

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Cargo

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Oran – Perpignan – Lyon

MSN:

223

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

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Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The three engine aircraft departed Oran-Es Senia Airport at 1530LT on a cargo flight to Lyon via Perpignan, carrying a load of vegetables. En route, the airplane crashed in the Gulf of Lion about 90 km east of Perpignan for unknown reason. All four occupants were killed.
Crew:
Mr. Screka, pilot,
Mr. Pelletier, radio operator,
Mr. Prado, mechanic.
Passenger:
Mr. Saada.

Crash of an Airspeed AS.65 Consul into the Mediterranean Sea: 2 killed

Date & Time: Feb 27, 1948 at 1600 LT

Type of aircraft:

Airspeed AS.65 Consul

Operator:

Pullman Airways

Registration:

G-AJGE

Flight Phase:

Charter/Taxi (Non Scheduled Revenue Flight)

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Société Indochinoise de Transports Aériens - SITA

Schedule:

Nairobi – El Adem – Benina – Castel Benito – London

MSN:

5121

YOM:

1947

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Captain / Total flying hours:

964

Circumstances:

At Benina Airport, the pilot was in a hurry and took off in a rush at 1535LT, with the passenger but without his radio navigator. While flying along the Libyan coast, he encountered poor weather conditions and the twin engine aircraft crashed into the sea around 1600LT. SAR operations were conducted but eventually suspended few days later as no trace of the aircraft nor both occupants was found. On March 6, 1948, some debris and the dead body of the passenger were found on a beach in Zarzis, Tunisia.

Probable cause:

Investigations revealed that the pilot, also owner of this company, showed an irresponsible attitude on several occasions during the mission from Nairobi to London. During the fuel stop in Benina, the refueling operation was completed without filter as no fuel supplier representatives was available at that time. So the pilot decided to refuel without any filter. In addition, oil tanks were to be completed but the pilot refused due to lack of time. The aircraft's radio systems were partially impaired at the time of departure and the radio navigator preferred to stay in Benina because he was tired and felt it would be difficult to locate Castel Benito because of the night and the deterioration of the weather conditions. Besides this, investigators stated that the forecasts of wind were erroneous, which was considered as a contributing factor.

Crash of a Bristol 170 Freighter 21E into the Mediterranean Sea: 5 killed

Date & Time: Jan 25, 1948

Type of aircraft:

Bristol 170 Freighter

Operator:

Registration:

F-BCJA

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Delivery

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Marseille – Rome – Athens – Nicosia – Baghdad – Saigon

MSN:

12802

YOM:

1946

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The aircraft was on its way to Indochina to be delivered to the Société Indochinoise de Transports Aériens (SITA) and was carrying two British engineers and three pilots. While cruising between Turkey and Cyprus, the aircraft crashed in unknown circumstances into the Mediterranean Sea, about 100 km north of the Cyprus coast. No trace of the aircraft nor the five occupants was ever found.

Crash of a Lockheed PV-1 Ventura V in the Mediterranean Sea: 5 killed

Date & Time: Apr 1, 1944

Type of aircraft:

Lockheed PV-1 Ventura

Operator:

Registration:

FP633

Flight Phase:

Survey / Patrol / Reconnaissance

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site: