59 Die In Three Plane Crashes

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31519, 6 November 1967, Page 13

59 Die In Three Plane Crashes

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter —Copyright) LONDON, November 5. Fifty-nine people have died, but 131 have escaped the shattered wreckage of three planes which have crashed since Friday.

In Hong Kong today one woman passenger died when a Cathay Pacific Convair 880 jetliner plunged into the harbour soon after take-off. The other 126 on board survived, and most suffered only minor injuries.

the time of the mishap only a light mist hung over the area. The Dart Herald, owned by Sadia Airlines, crashed in hills about 250 miles from Curitiba. Helicopters flew five survivors to hospital after rescuers had spent hours clearing a landing site in thick forest. Rescuers reached the crash site early yesterday after a 10-hour climb through the forest. Hospital authorities said four of the survivors, including two of the plane’s five crewmen, were in serious condition, but the fifth, Mrs Sylvia Tavares, had only light injuries. She lost her husband and two children in the crash. A Cathay Pacific Convair 880 jet airliner plunged into Hong Kong harbour on take off from Kai Tak International Airport. Thirty-three of the survivors were admitted to hospital with injuries. The remainder are suffering from only minor injuries or shock.

The most tragic crash was last night, near London Airport, when 30 passengers and seven crew members died when a Spanish jetliner crashed and spread wreckage and bodies over a wide area of the Surrey countryside. In Curitiba, Brazil, 20 died when a Dart Herald aircraft crashed into mountains on Friday. Six persons, who were also believed to have died in the crash, were found alive yesterday, but one died soon after rescuers reached the site. The Spanish plane, an Iberian airlines Caravelle, tore a 600-yard swathe across a wooded Surrey hillside, hitting a farmhouse and killing or maiming scores of sheep. One wall of the farmhouse caved in, but the occupiers were not hurt.

The passengers included 25 Britons, two Americans, two Spaniards, and an Australian. The airliners came down in a thick patch of pine wood and heath. The centre part of the fuselage, with the word “Iberia” clearly visible, remained intact. Another part of the fuselage was the second biggest piece of wreckage. The wings, tail and the rest of the plane were broken and scattered over a 500-yard radius. The wreckage showed little sign of fire. Seats and lifebelts, ripped loose on impact, dangled from tree branches. Bodies of passengers and sheep were in mixed heaps on the ground. It had been raining in the area before the crash, but at