Date & Time:
Mar 5, 1967
Type of aircraft:
Grumman HU-16 (SA-16) Albatross
Operator:
Registration:
1240
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Survey / Patrol / Reconnaissance
Survivors:
No
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
MSN:
G-61
YOM:
1951
Country:
World
Region:
World
Crew on board:
6
Crew fatalities:
6
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
0
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
6
Circumstances:
On a Sunday night search and rescue case the aircraft and crew responded to a request for assistance from a fishing vessel reportedly taking on water 20 miles off the coast. The same plane and crew had just returned from another search of over six hours. The entire crew perished when their seaplane struck the water while attempting to deliver a dewatering pump to a sinking vessel. No trace of the aircraft nor the six crew members was found.
Crew:
Lt Clifford E. Hanna,
Lt Jg Charles F. Shaw,
AD1 Ralph H. Studstill,
AT1 Eckley M. Powlus Jr.,
AT2 James B. Thompson,
AE3 Arthur L. Wilson Jr.
Crew:
Lt Clifford E. Hanna,
Lt Jg Charles F. Shaw,
AD1 Ralph H. Studstill,
AT1 Eckley M. Powlus Jr.,
AT2 James B. Thompson,
AE3 Arthur L. Wilson Jr.
Probable cause:
Under the circumstance, the most plausible explanation for a crash of this nature is that the pilot inadvertently flew the aircraft into the water. However, insufficient evidence was available to support a conclusion as to the factors causing the accident. Consequently, the mishap was placed in the undetermined cause category.
