Shanghai | Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives

Shortly after takeoff from Kunming Airport, while in initial climb, the aircraft stalled and crashed in a field located 3 km from the airport. Five passengers were seriously injured while all 25 other occupants were killed. It appears that three of the four engines failed shortly after rotation. All passengers were Belgian missionaries.

Probable cause:

Failure of three engine during initial climb.

Crash of a Douglas C-54A-DO Skymaster off Laoag: 7 killed

Date & Time: Jan 11, 1947

Type of aircraft:

Douglas C-54 Skymaster

Operator:

Far East Air Transport

Registration:

PI-C100

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Lake, Sea, Ocean, River

Schedule:

Shanghai – Manila

MSN:

3106

YOM:

1943

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

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Circumstances:

While flying about 130 km off Laoag, the engine number two caught fire. The captain decided to ditch the aircraft. Seven passengers were killed while 35 other occupants were rescued. The aircraft was lost.

Probable cause:

Engine fire.

Crash of a Curtiss C-46 in Qingdao: 43 killed

Date & Time: Jan 5, 1947

Type of aircraft:

Curtiss C-46 Commando

Operator:

Registration:

XT-T51

Flight Phase:

Landing (descent or approach)

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Shanghai – Qingdao – Beijing

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

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Pax fatalities:

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Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The descent to Qingdao Airport was performed in poor weather conditions with low clouds and low visibility. On final approach, while too low, the aircraft hit the slope of a mountain and crashed, killing all 43 occupants. According to the US Authorities, the cloud base was very low and the weather conditions at the time of the accident were below minima published by the US Navy. Due to low visibility, the crew was unable to distinguish the mountain and was completing the approach at a too low altitude without any visual contact with the ground.

Crash of a Douglas C-47A-25-DK near Huaihua

Date & Time: Mar 31, 1946

Type of aircraft:

Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3)

Operator:

Registration:

CA6

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Shanghai – Kunming

MSN:

13236

YOM:

1944

Location:

Country:

Region:

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Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

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Circumstances:

Enroute, the crew encountered poor weather conditions and lost his orientation. All three occupants decided to abandon the aircraft and bailed out. The aircraft crashed in a field and was destroyed while all crewmen were unhurt.

Crash of a Douglas C-47 in Nankin: 20 killed

Date & Time: Mar 17, 1946

Type of aircraft:

Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3)

Operator:

Flight Phase:

Landing (descent or approach)

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Shanghai – Nankin

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

On approach to Nankin Airport in poor weather conditions and low visibility, the aircraft hit the slope of a mountain and was destroyed by impact forces. All 20 occupants were killed, among them Lieutenant-General Dai Li, Chief of the Kuomintang (KMT) Army secret service.

Crash of a Curtiss C-46A-60-CK Commando in Zhijiang: 45 killed

Date & Time: Oct 30, 1945 at 1915 LT

Type of aircraft:

Curtiss C-46 Commando

Operator:

Registration:

43-47228

Flight Phase:

Takeoff (climb)

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Schedule:

Zhijiang – Shanghai

MSN:

299

YOM:

1945

Location:

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Region:

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Circumstances:

Shortly after takeoff, while in initial climb, the aircraft banked right, stalled and crashed in huge explosion. 45 occupants, among them three crew members, were killed, while five others were seriously injured. Weather was good at the time of the accident. The copilot reported prior to departure that the right engine magneto check was unsatisfactory. The captain considered the check as good and started the takeoff procedure. It appears the aircraft did not gain sufficient height after rotation as its total weight was well above the admissible MTOW. There were 46 soldiers on board, with their full package and ammunition as well.
Crew:
Cpl Wayne N. Alquist,
1st Lt Stanley Tosh 2.

Crash of a Douglas DC-3C near Suichang: 20 killed

Date & Time: Oct 20, 1945 at 0840 LT

Type of aircraft:

Douglas DC-3

Operator:

Registration:

104

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

City

Schedule:

Shanghai – Hong Kong

MSN:

20868

YOM:

1944

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

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Circumstances:

The aircraft left Shanghai at 0720LT bound for Hong Kong. At 0840LT, the radio operator contacted Nanking ground control when communication was cut. The aircraft crashed on several houses in a village located about 20 km northeast of Suichang, in the province of Zhejiang. All 13 occupants, among them staff of the Aviation Inspection Institute, were killed. In the village, few houses were destroyed and seven people were killed while four others were injured.
Crew:
Cpt Frank L. Higgs, pilot,
Tang Ji, copilot,
Weng XiJun, radio operator,
Zhou Yuan, flight engineer,
Zhao KeFei,
Yang Qida.