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:
No
Site:
Mountains
Schedule:
Shanghai – Qingdao – Beijing
Country:
China
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
5
Crew fatalities:
5
Pax on board:
38
Pax fatalities:
38
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
43
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.
