Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation

Operator:

Registration:

D-ALAK

Flight Phase:

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Schedule:

Hamburg – Frankfurt – Paris – Lisbon – Dakar – Recife – Rio de Janeiro – Buenos Aires

MSN:

4602

YOM:

1955

Flight number:

LH502

Location:

Rio de Janeiro-Galeão

Rio de Janeiro

Country:

Brazil

Region:

South America

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The Super Constellation operated on flight LH502 from Hamburg, Germany to Buenos Aires, Argentina. The crew were cleared to descend from 4,200 m to 3,000 m when 20 min out from Rio de Janeiro. They were to maintain 3,000 m to the KX NDB in preparation for an approach and landing at runway 14. Over KX they were cleared to descend to 900 m. Galeão Approach was contacted and normal position reports were made. The plane descended over Guanabara Bay under rainy conditions and struck the water with the nose wheel. The crew then presumably tried to continue the approach, but the Constellation crashed near Flecheiras Beach, short of the Galeão runway. The airplane was destroyed by fire and seven crew members and all 29 passengers were killed. Only three crew members survived. Crew duty and flight time exceeded the Brazilian limits but did not exceed the German limitations.

Probable cause:

In spite of an exhaustive investigation it was not possible to determine the actual cause. However, the probable cause was considered to be pilot error in descending below the minimum altitude on final approach. Aircrew fatigue was considered to be a contributing factor.

Crash of a Lockheed L-1049D Super Constellation in New York

Date & Time: Nov 10, 1958 at 1101 LT

Type of aircraft:

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Operator:

Registration:

N6503C

Flight Phase:

Takeoff (climb)

Flight Type:

Training

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Schedule:

New York - New York

MSN:

4165

YOM:

1954

Flight number:

LN800

Location:

New York-Idlewild

New York

Country:

United States of America

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Captain / Total flying hours:

12652

Captain / Total hours on type:

1634.00

Copilot / Total flying hours:

13642

Copilot / Total hours on type:

2488

Aircraft flight hours:

11980

Circumstances:

Seaboard & Western's Flight LN-800, a training flight, began its takeoff run on runway 31R of the New York International Airport at 1100. When an airspeed of 117 knots (V 2) was reached, the aircraft became airborne and climbed to an altitude of approximately 25 feet. At this altitude severe control difficulty was encountered, causing the aircraft to veer suddenly to the left and the left wing to lower 20 to 30 degrees. This wing struck the runway and from this point on directional control of the aircraft was lost. The aircraft skidded In a westerly direction into a temporary terminal area and came to rest after striking a parked Trans Canada Air Lines Vickers 724 Viscount. All five crew members were injured while the Viscount was empty.

Probable cause:

The Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was an unwanted propeller reversal at a low altitude occurring immediately after takeoff. A contributing factor was the inadequate overhaul procedure employed by the propeller manufacturer.

Final Report:

Crash of a Lockheed WV-2 Super Constellation off Argentia NAS: 11 killed

Date & Time: Oct 18, 1958

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

141294

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Lake, Sea, Ocean, River

Schedule:

Patuxent River - Argentia

MSN:

4418

YOM:

1956

Location:

Argentia NAS

Newfoundland & Labrador

Country:

Canada

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

While approaching Argentia NAS on a flight from Patuxent River NAS, the crew did not realize his altitude was insufficient. On final, the four engine aircraft crashed into the Bay of Placentia, about 1,000 feet short of runway threshold. Eleven occupants were killed while 18 others were injured, some of them seriously. The aircraft was destroyed.

Crash of a Lockheed L-1049G-82 Super Constellation on Mt Alto del Cedro: 23 killed

Date & Time: Oct 14, 1958 at 0023 LT

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

YV-C-ANC

Flight Phase:

Mt Alto del Cedro (Serranía de Perijá)

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Panama City – Maracaibo

MSN:

4575

YOM:

1955

Location:

Zulia

Country:

Venezuela

Region:

South America

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Captain / Total hours on type:

2134.00

Copilot / Total flying hours:

1069

Copilot / Total hours on type:

469

Circumstances:

The aircraft was on a flight between Panama City and Maracaibo, carrying a crew of 6 and 17 passengers. The crew reported over the Riohacha intersection at 2351LT at an altitude of 15,000 feet and estimated his arrival at Maracaibo-Grano de Oro Airport at 0030LT. At 0015LT the crew reported he was 35 miles out at an altitude of 10,000 feet. The last contact with the aircraft was at 0022LT. It crashed on Alto del Cedro Mountain in the Serranía de Perijá, killing all 23 persons aboard.

Probable cause:

The accident occurred owing to premature descent caused by the pilot's failure to allow himself a suitable margin for:
- altered flight course and
- shortage of navigational facilities in the area.
It was also reported that the pilot turned northwest on reaching position Tango/2, instead of turning at Barranquilla, and flew towards a wrong position 45 miles from the Riohacha intersection, having failed to take this discrepancy into account in calculating his distance from Maracaibo. It is very likely that the pilot, when reporting 35 miles from Maracaibo, had seen the Carrasquero lights and the surrounding gas flares, through a thin layer of cloud below and believed they were the lights of Maracaibo. The pilot had no way of definitely determining his position in the area, and, therefore, ought to have taken greater precaution against descent at a mistaken location. His best alternative should have been to remain at a safer altitude until (1) he sighted the Maracaibo lights (not the glare), or (2) obtained oscillation of the radio compass needle over Maracaibo.

Final Report:

Crash of a Lockheed L-1049H Super Constellation on Mt Ōyama: 8 killed

Date & Time: Sep 9, 1958

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

N6920C

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Travis – Hickam – Wake Island – Tachikawa

MSN:

4822

YOM:

1957

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The crew was performing a flight from Travis AFB to Tachikawa AFB with intermediate stops at Hickam Field and Wake Island, carrying a load of various goods. While approaching Tachikawa AFB in poor weather conditions, the four engine aircraft struck the slope of Mt Ōyama (1,252 metres high) located 24 km west of the airbase. The aircraft disintegrated on impact and all eight occupants were killed.

Probable cause:

The crew continued the approach below the minimum safe altitude, maybe following a wrong altimeter setting.

Crash of a Lockheed L-1049H-01-06-162 Super Constellation into the Atlantic Ocean: 99 killed

Date & Time: Aug 14, 1958 at 0345 LT

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

PH-LKM

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

Lake, Sea, Ocean, River

Schedule:

Amsterdam – Shannon – Gander – New York

MSN:

4841

YOM:

1958

Flight number:

KL607E

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

886

Circumstances:

While cruising at an altitude of 4,000 meters by night, the crew contacted ATC to report his position and all was ok on board. About ten minutes later, the airplane disappeared from radar screens and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean about 180 km northwest of the Irish coast. SAR operations were dispatched on the scene and several debris and bodies were found in the early morning. All operations were suspended after few days and all 99 occupants were considered as deceased.

Probable cause:

On the basis of the evidence available and the investigation of possible serious threats to safety, the Board cannot establish the cause of the accident with certainty. Moreover, investigation of the possibility that the cause of the accident may have been a bomb explosion has yielded no conclusive facts to support such a hypothesis. The statements in the press to this effect have either been based on misunderstandings or else were tendentious. On the other hand, the Board attributes a high degree of probability to hypothesis that the cause of the accident is related to 'overspeeding' of one of the outboard propellers resulting from oil pollution after a gear had been damaged when the supercharger of the corresponding engine was accelerated (shifted). This probably took place close to the time of the accident. The overspeeding of the propeller, owing to the obstruction of metal particles in the regulator valves may have been such as to cause the propeller pitch to decrease and the propeller could not be feathered. The condition might provoke a flight disturbance which could be corrected only by prompt and powerful handling of aileron and rudder controls. in view of the rapidity with which this defect develops and taking into account that recognition of the nature of this malfunction requires a certain time, it is not always possible for the crew to intervene early enough to restore conditions of controlled flight. With respect to the presumed cause of the accident the Board has no grounds to suppose that the occurrence of the presumed malfunction might be attributable to neglect on the part of maintenance personnel or to incorrect measures taken by the crew or that the crew had been at fault in piloting the aircraft after the malfunction had occurred.

Crash of a Lockheed R7V-1 Super Constellation near Taft: 5 killed

Date & Time: May 14, 1958

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

131652

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Ontario - Moffett

MSN:

4153

YOM:

1954

Location:

Taft

California

Country:

United States of America

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

En route from Ontario (California) to Moffett AFB, the crew decided to perform five consecutive stalls. Doing so, the airplane lost 3,000 feet and suffered severe vibrations that caused structural damages to skin, stringers and bulkheads in the aft portions of the fuselage. The pilot requested permission to divert to Taft Airport for an emergency landing but shortly later, the airplane disintegrated in the air and crashed in a mountainous area located 7 miles east of Taft. The aircraft was totally destroyed and all five crew members were killed.

Probable cause:

In-flight structural failure of the airframe.

Crash of a Lockheed WV-2 Super Constellation into the Atlantic Ocean: 22 killed

Date & Time: Feb 20, 1958 at 0535 LT

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

141310

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Lake, Sea, Ocean, River

Schedule:

Argentia - Lajes

MSN:

4434

YOM:

1956

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The crew was completing a flight from Argentia-Bristol Field NAS, Newfoundland, to Lajes Airbase, Azores Islands. While flying by night about 177 km west of Crovo Island, Azores, the airplane disappeared and crashed into the ocean. SAR operations were conducted for several days but no trace of the airplane nor the 22 occupants was ever found.

Probable cause:

Due to lack of evidences, the exact cause of the accident could not be determined with certainty.

Crash of a Lockheed R7V-1 Super Constellation at Patuxent River NAS: 9 killed

Date & Time: Jan 14, 1958 at 0830 LT

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

128437

Flight Phase:

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Flight Type:

Training

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Patuxent River - Patuxent River

MSN:

4104

YOM:

1953

Location:

Patuxent River NAS

Maryland

Country:

United States of America

Region: