Crash of a Curtiss C-46D-10-CU Commando on Mt Planchón-Peteroa: 8 killed
Date & Time:
Jul 11, 1966
Operator:
Registration:
HK-527
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Bogotá – La Paz – Santiago – Buenos Aires
MSN:
33215
YOM:
1945
Crew on board:
3
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
5
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
8
Circumstances:
The aircraft was completing a special cargo flight from Bogotá to Buenos Aires with intermediate stops in La Paz and Santiago de Chile, carrying five passengers, three crew members and a load of eight bulls for an exhibition in Buenos Aires. While cruising in poor weather conditions, the airplane struck the slope of Mt Planchón-Peteroa (4,107 meters high) located about 200 km south of Santiago. SAR operations were conducted but eventually suspended after few days as no trace of the aircraft nor the crew was found. The wreckage was eventually found on 18 November 1966. All eight occupants have been killed.
Probable cause:
Controlled flight into terrain.
