Date & Time:
Nov 24, 1944 at 1200 LT
Type of aircraft:
Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3)
Operator:
Registration:
106
Flight Phase:
Landing (descent or approach)
Flight Type:
Cargo
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Suifu – Kunming
MSN:
14861/26306
YOM:
1944
Country:
China
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
3
Crew fatalities:
0
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
0
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
While approaching Kunming, the crew was unable to locate the airport because the bearing signals were inaudible. As the weather conditions worsened, the captain decided to turn over the region, awaiting an improvement, but as the fuel reserve was insufficient, the crew decided eventually to bail out and abandoned the aircraft. While the aircraft dove into the ground and crashed in a wooded area, all three crew members were later recovered and evacuated safely.
Probable cause:
It appears the crew did not use the radio receiver properly when he started the approach to Kunming. The Kunming station was transmitting signals to the crew who was unable to localize the airport due a wrong usage of the on board receiving system.
