Arabs Shot Down American Plane

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30631, 23 December 1964, Page 9

Arabs Shot Down American Plane

(N.Z.P.A.- Reuter—Copyright)

CAIRO, December 22.

A United Arab Republic official spokesman confirmed yesterday that U.A.R. fighters shot down an unidentified plane on Saturday “after it did not heed orders to land at Cairo Airport.”

The Government said the plane was about to leave Egypt after flying 300 miles across Egypt. A United States Embassy spokesman said the plane, a twin-engined Fairchild C-82, belonged to the John Mecom oil Company of Houston, Texas. The pilot was Hoyt Williams, aged 44. from Texas. The other person on board was Kegel Grupp, a Scandinavian. The company spokesman said the plane had been fly-

ing from Amman to Benghazi, Libya, to buy drilling materials.

Earlier, police at Abu Hommos, about 25 miles east of Alexandria, said a plane crashed near there on Saturday. Two bodies, both badly burned, had been found in the wreckage. Associated Press said both sides appeared to be making the best of a potentially disastrous incident coming after the burning the U.S. Information Service library by a mob of African students in Cairo less than four weeks ago. The U.S. embassy said the U.S. and Egyptian Governments were co-operating in investigating the incident. Embassy officials said they viewed the situation with the utmost gravity. The plane left Amman on Saturday morning, apparently one hour after filing a flight plan. The Egyptian authorities normally take one week to approve a flight plan and there appeared little doubt Cairo authorities were not promptly informed of the plane's impending arrival over Egyptian territory.