Date & Time:
May 20, 1947 at 0816 LT
Type of aircraft:
Boeing B-29 Superfortress
Operator:
Registration:
44-86472
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Military
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Roswell – Borinquen
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
20
Crew fatalities:
1
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
0
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
1
Circumstances:
En route from Roswell AAF to Borinquen, PR, the engine n°3 caught fire. Unable to extinguish the fire, the crew decided to bail out and abandon the airplane that dove into the ground and crashed 5 km west of Merkel. A crew, 1st Lt Irving Bloom, was killed, and 19 other occupants were injured.
Probable cause:
Engine fire in flight.
