Crash of a Pitcairn PA-8 Mailwing in Scottsboro

Date & Time: Nov 28, 1934 at 0445 LT
Type of aircraft:
Pitcairn PA-8 Mailwing
Operator:
Registration:
NC10750
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Chicago – Chattanooga – Atlanta
MSN:
161
YOM:
1930
Flight number:
EA007
Location:
Scottsboro
Alabama
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Captain / Total flying hours:
5700
Circumstances:
Flight southbound from Chicago to Atlanta. The pilot Robert Chew was slightly injured. Original load of mail 126 pounds. 60 pounds salvaged in charred condition and forwarded by train the same day from Scottsboro. No data as to any markings applied to salvaged mail. While cruising about at 3,000 feet with zero visibility in a thick fog in the mountainous sections of Tennessee and northern Alabama, the pilot Chew was forced to take to his parachute when his motor went dead from lack of fuel. Chew made a successful leap, landing in a pasture, the plane crashing about 100 yards away, bursting into flames as it struck the ground. Chew is a veteran pilot, having flown every mail route of Eastern Air since he entered the company's service in 1931. He has 5,700 hours of flying to his credit. Since the line inaugurated its mail service in 1928, only 980 pounds of mail has been lost out of 4,277,588 pounds carried.
Probable cause:
Engine failure in flight caused by a fuel exhaustion.

Crash of a Stinson SM-6000 in Amazonia: 2 killed

Date & Time: Nov 15, 1934 at 2342 LT
Type of aircraft:
Stinson SM-6000
Operator:
Registration:
NC10809
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
No
Site:
Mountains
Schedule:
Omaha – Kansas City
MSN:
5031
YOM:
1931
Location:
Amazonia
Missouri
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
1
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
2
Circumstances:
While flying at night in marginal weather conditions, the pilot did not realize he was too low. The airplane impacted trees and crashed in a wooded area located near Amazonia, bursting into flames. The aircraft was destroyed by impact forces and a post crash fire and both occupants were killed.
Probable cause:
The pilot committed an error in judgment in turning too close to the ground in a fog-bound area. Weather reporting facilities of the Company were inadequate to meet the conditions that confronted the pilot in this flight.

Crash of a Polikarpov P-5 in Kaduy: 1 killed

Date & Time: Nov 15, 1934 at 1630 LT
Type of aircraft:
Polikarpov P-5
Operator:
Registration:
CCCP-L786
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
No
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Irkutsk – Krasnoyarsk
MSN:
5683
YOM:
1932
Location:
Kaduy
Irkutsk oblast
Country:
Russia
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Aircraft flight hours:
341
Circumstances:
The pilot, sole on board, departed Irkutsk at 1440LT on a mail flight to Krasnoyarsk. After passing over Nizhneudinsk, he encountered poor weather conditions with blizzard and heavy snow falls. He reduced his altitude to establish a visual contact with the ground and elected to return to Nizhneudinsk. At a height of about 20 metres, the airplane impacted the top of a larch tree with its right wing, continued for about 50 metres then crashed in a wooded area, bursting into flames. The pilot was killed.
Probable cause:
The accident resulted from an impact with trees while cruising at low altitude through poor visibility due to bad weather conditions. It was determined that the pilot was cleared to takeoff from Irkutsk despite the weather conditions en route were unfavorable. Also, the pilot was inexperienced in instrument flights.

Crash of a Northrop Alpha 4 in Saint Clairsville

Date & Time: Sep 22, 1934
Type of aircraft:
Northrop Alpha 4
Operator:
Registration:
NC986Y
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Plain, Valley
MSN:
11
YOM:
1931
Location:
Saint Clairsville
Ohio
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
While on a mail flight, the pilot decided to abandon the aircraft and bailed out. The single engine airplane entered an uncontrolled descent and crashed in Saint Clairsville, west of Wheeling, and was destroyed. The pilot was uninjured.
Probable cause:
The decision to abandon the aircraft was taken due to a fuel exhaustion.

Crash of a Northrop Delta 1E in Virestad

Date & Time: Jul 6, 1934
Type of aircraft:
Northrop Delta
Operator:
Registration:
SE-ADW
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Stockholm – Malmö – Hannover
MSN:
29
YOM:
1934
Location:
Virestad
Småland
Country:
Sweden
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Aircraft flight hours:
29
Circumstances:
The crew departed Stockholm-Barkarby Airport on a mail flight to Hanover with an intermediate stop in Malmö. On the leg to Malmö, serious vibrations with the rudder forced the crew to abandon the airplane and to bail out. The single engine aircraft named 'Småland' entered an uncontrolled descent and crashed in an open field located 15 km northeast of Älmhults. Both crew members were uninjured and the aircraft was destroyed. Brand new, the aircraft was delivered last June and totalized 29 flying hours only.

Crash of a Polikarpov P-5 in Kuschevka: 1 killed

Date & Time: Jun 10, 1934 at 0640 LT
Type of aircraft:
Polikarpov P-5
Operator:
Registration:
CCCP-L1528
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
No
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Mineralnye Vody – Armavir – Rostov-on-Don
MSN:
7952
YOM:
1934
Location:
Kushevka
Krasnodar Krai
Country:
Russia
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Aircraft flight hours:
54
Circumstances:
The airplane departed Mineralnye Vody on a mail flight to Rostov with an intermediate stop in Armavir. Following technical problems and due to marginal weather conditions, the pilot was forced to pass the overnight in Armavir. The pilot departed Armavir at 0510LT bound for Rostov. While approaching Kuschevka, he encountered foggy conditions and decided to make a 180 turn. Doing so, and apparently while trying to establish a visual contact with the ground, the airplane lost height and crashed in an open field. The aircraft was destroyed and the pilot was killed.
Probable cause:
The accident was the result of an impact with the ground following a loss of altitude in reduced visibility due to fog.
The following contributing factors were identified:
- The pilot made the decision to continue the flight through fog and did not make the decision early enough to turn back;
- A sudden formation of fog;
- The weather station of Kushevka had issued a timely warning bulletin but this was transferred too late to the airport of Armavir after being blocked for almost two hours at the telegraph office of Rostov.

Crash of a Polikarpov P-5 near Optukha: 1 killed

Date & Time: Jun 6, 1934 at 0115 LT
Type of aircraft:
Polikarpov P-5
Operator:
Registration:
CCCP-L787
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
No
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Moscow - Kharkiv
MSN:
5684
YOM:
1932
Location:
Optukha
Orel oblast
Country:
Russia
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Aircraft flight hours:
313
Aircraft flight cycles:
185
Circumstances:
The aircraft departed Moscow at 2255LT on June 5 on a night mail flight to Kharkiv, carrying one pilot and a load of 728 kilos of mail. While cruising at a height of 50 metres over the valley of Oka, weather conditions deteriorated with heavy clouds, drizzle and low ceiling. After completing two turns, the pilot did not realize he lost too much altitude when the airplane impacted ground and crashed in a field located 5 km south of Optukha. The aircraft was destroyed and the pilot, sole on board, was killed.
Probable cause:
Controlled flight into terrain following an error of judgement on part of the pilot regarding the aircraft's altitude during a flight through difficult weather conditions. A poor flight planning was considered as a contributing factor.

Crash of a Polikarpov P-5 near Karatkansk: 1 killed

Date & Time: May 18, 1934 at 2020 LT
Type of aircraft:
Polikarpov P-5
Operator:
Registration:
CCCP-L1075
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
No
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Novosibirsk – Omsk
MSN:
6434
YOM:
1933
Location:
Karatkansk
Novosibirsk oblast
Country:
Russia
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Aircraft flight hours:
491
Aircraft flight cycles:
152
Circumstances:
The pilot, sole on board, departed Novosibirsk Airport at 1740LT on a mail flight to Omsk. After passing over Tatarsk, weather conditions worsened with low ceiling, heavy rain falls and strong winds up to 57 km/h. After entering clouds, the pilots lost his bearings and elected to return to Tatarsk but the local beacon was unserviceable due to poor weather conditions. The pilot turned several minutes and probably attempted an emergency landing when the aircraft impacted ground and crashed in a field located 5 km south of the Karatkansk Station. The airplane was destroyed and the pilot was killed.
Probable cause:
The accident was the consequence of an impact with the ground at high speed while the pilot had lost all bearings in an unfavorable environment.
The following contributing factors were identified:
- The person in charge to provide weather bulletin prior to departure from Novosibirsk failed to transmit accurate weather reports to the pilot;
- The person in charge to provide same services en route (at the intermediate weather station) also failed to provide accurate information;
- The pilot took the decision to continue the flight through clouds and below the altitude of 200 metres.

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

Crash of a Polikarpov SP in Aktyubinsk

Date & Time: Apr 28, 1934 at 1010 LT
Type of aircraft:
Polikarpov Po-2
Operator:
Registration:
CCCP-L1015
Flight Phase:
Landing (descent or approach)
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Airport (less than 10 km from airport)
MSN:
5716
YOM:
1934
Location:
Aktyubinsk
Aktobe
Country:
Kazakhstan
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
The airplane departed Aktyubinsk Airport on a mail flight, carrying one pilot and 125 kg of mail. Ten minutes after takeoff, the pilot decided to return because he thought there was a loss of hydraulic pressure. Following a wrong approach configuration, he landed with a tailwind component when, upon landing, the airplane crashed and collided with a parked Polikarpov SP registered CCCP-L1018. The pilot escaped with minor injuries and the airplane was destroyed.
Probable cause:
The following contributing factors were identified:
- The pilot adopted wrong piloting techniques,
- Wrong approach calculation and configuration,
- Non compliance with published procedures,
- The pilot landed with a tailwind component,
- The person in charge of the airport failed to change the 'T' according to the wind component.

Crash of a Latécoère 25-3R in Berre-l'Étang

Date & Time: Mar 20, 1934 at 0500 LT
Type of aircraft:
Latécoère 25
Operator:
Registration:
F-AISB
Flight Phase:
Takeoff (climb)
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Marseille - Barcelona
MSN:
650
YOM:
1928
Location:
Marseille-Marignane
Bouches-du-Rhône
Country:
France
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
Few minutes after takeoff from Marseille-Marignane Airport, while climbing, the single engine airplane went out of control and crashed in a marshy field located in Berre-l'Étang, about 6 km north of the airfield. Both crew members were injured and the aircraft was destroyed.
Subscribe to Postal (mail)