Date & Time:
Jan 22, 1961 at 1609 LT
Type of aircraft:
Curtiss C-46 Commando
Operator:
Registration:
N1308V
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Cargo
Survivors:
No
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
San Antonio – Mobile
MSN:
22583
YOM:
1945
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
2
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
0
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
2
Circumstances:
En route from San Antonio to Mobile at an altitude of 2,500 feet, the crew informed ATC that the left engine caught fire. He elected to divert to the nearest airport but few minutes later, the left wing detached and the airplane crashed in flames in a field located in Katy, about 27 miles west of Houston. The aircraft was destroyed and both pilots were killed.
Probable cause:
It was determined that the 8th cylinder on the left engine failed in flight, causing hydraulic leak. The oil spread in the engine nacelle and caught fire while contacting high temperature equipment. As the fire could not be contained, it spread to the left wing which detached shortly later.
