Zone

Crash of a Ford 4 in Esperanza: 7 killed

Date & Time: Sep 7, 1946
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Flight Phase:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Santa Clara – Havana
Country:
Crew on board:
3
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
4
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
7
Circumstances:
Few minutes after takeoff from Santa Clara, bound for Havana, the crew encountered problem with a fuel leak and elected to return. Unfortunately, weather conditions deteriorated rapidly and the visibility was poor. Apparently to establish a visual contact with the ground, the captain decided to reduce his altitude when the aircraft hit the roof of a house and crashed in Esperanza, about 9 km northwest of Santa Clara. All seven occupants were killed while nobody on the ground was injured.