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48 SURVIVORS FROM PLANE

Account Of Crash In Stormy Atlantic

(N.Z PA.-Reuter—Copyright)

SHANNON (Ireland), September 25.

Ships and aircraft continued their massive search early today for 13 people missing after the crash of a United States airliner in the North Atlantic. The Super Constellation, owned by the Flying Tiger Airline, plunged into the sea 500 miles west of Ireland with 76 people aboard shortly before midnight on Sunday.

lhe chartered airliner was flying from Trenton, New Jersey, to Frankfurt, Germany, with 55 United States servicemen, 13 of their dependants, and a crew of eight.

During yesterday’s search, 18 survivors were picked up by the 9047-ton Swiss merchantman Celerina, and 12 bodies were recovered.

A Royal Canadian Navy medical officer from the Canadian aircraft carrier Bonaventure treated the injured aboard the Celerina. The Celerina later planned to head for Antwerp with 44 survivors aboard, including tliree women.

Four seriously injured passer.gers and three dead were taken aboard the Bonaventure by helicopter. A British ocean weather ship, the Weather Adviser, picked up the other nine bodies. The Bonaventure, which took charge of the search

when she arrived at the crash area early on Monday, signalled that she intended to stay in the area until the search ended later today.

The aircraft carrier would then make tor Shannon, where the injured and dead would be taken off. A Royal Canadian Air Force spokesman said the voyage would take about 20 hours.

Helicopters from the Bonaventure. Royal Air Force Shackleton aircraft, and several British ships maintained the search in darkness early today for the missing 13. who include two children

It was announced that those missing from the airliner were nine United States Army personnel. three women, two children, and two of the aircraft’s crew. Then the British Air Ministry said that three bodies had been seen to sink before they could be recovered, which brought the number of people still unaccounted for to 13.

A spokesman for Flying T.ger said the Defence Department had informed it that three of the airliner's crew were listed dead and two "ere missing. Three of the crew had survived.

A message from the Bonaventure describing the crash said that the port wing of the Super Constellation broke

>ff with the impact on the water. The message said: "Seats on the port side of the cabin broke loose and hurtled forward. Those on the starboard side remained secure and in consequence the injuries to those passengers were relatively minor. “Those on the port side were cut. bruised, have missing teeth and two have broken bones." The message, which was sent to the Canadian Joint Staff in London last night, said: “Tonight on board a Swiss freighter and a Canadian carrier there are a total of 48 people who are miraculously alive. “Out here the wind and seas are strong and rough as they were, last night when Super Constellation 932 crashed into the Atlantic with 76 persons aboard. “Ditching drill, advice and a running commentary were given to the passengers during those last few hideous moments before impact. “ . . no-one seemed clear on what happened after the impact. The captain of the aircraft said that he walked through the cabin, and that it was clear before he finally abandoned the wreck through the forward escape hatch. “The one life raft, that contained most of the survivors, was full of water. But it floated and thev survived. “A U S.A.F major held his wife's head above the water in the raft, her shoulder dislocated. and both had bruises and cuts Jumped Together “A young German girl, married about a year to an American Army sergeant, held his hand as they jumped from the aircraft into the black sipray. “This afternoon, on board the Celerina, she stood staring in disbelief from her cabin window, still looking for her husband She will now visit her parents in Germany alone “A life raft was sighted this morning (Monday) and recovered. Inside was the dead body of a stewardess “A medical officer and sick bav attendant sent to the Celerina from the carrier

found survivors sitting round the lounge, or in their cabins Some were talking quietly to each other, some saying nothing, their eyes seeing nothing, but all were warm and all were thankful “Clothing was scarce. A lieutenant-colonel sat swathed in blankets. A stewardess in a seaman's jacket and dungarees clutched the front of the trousers in a bunch." The search for survivors covered 360 square miles United States Air Force aircraft frem Britain left the crash area after dusk but planned to return before dawn today. The • Constellation ditched after its engines failed one by one on the flight from Gander. Newfoundland to Germany. As dawn broke over the crash area today, merchant vessels which had taken part in the search were urged to continue on their voyages. In London, the Admiralty said that the Bonaventure had sent the merchantmen on their way. The ocean weather ship Juliette and the United States Coast Guard cutter Owasco would continue the search throughout the day, the Bonaventure reported. RAF and United States Air Force planes stationed in Britain will join helicopters from the Bonaventure in today’s search. Fuel Contaminated? The United States Government investigators will check the possibility of fuel contamination in the Constellation. according to United Press International sources. A Civil Aviation Board spokesman said failure of even two engines on a fourengine airliner was a rarity and the triple malfunction reported by the Flying Tiger crew was considered a one in 10,000.000 chance. He said trouble with the fuel system, or the fuel itself. would be the most likely target of investigation. The ditching resulted in the first deaths ever to occur in a “controlled" water landing in the Atlantic by a United States scheduled airline since they began flying land-based transports over the route 16 years ago. There have been several ditchings in the Pacific, including one that cost the lives of all 36 passengers and a seven-man crew. That involved a Pan American World Airways Stratocruiser which disappeared on November 8. 1957. on a flight from San Francisco to Honolulu. Only a few bodies and very little wreckage were found. But the victims were wearing life-jackets, indicating there had been advance warning of trouble and a likely ditching attempt. Ditching a large aircraft is regarded as one of the most difficult manoeuvres in aviation.

The Flying Tiger ditching was expected to renew demands that airliners be equipped to communicate directly with surface ships.

Permanent link to this item

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19620926.2.106

Bibliographic details

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29937, 26 September 1962, Page 15

Word Count
1,084

48 SURVIVORS FROM PLANE Press, Volume CI, Issue 29937, 26 September 1962, Page 15

48 SURVIVORS FROM PLANE Press, Volume CI, Issue 29937, 26 September 1962, Page 15

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