Haute-Saône

Crash landed at Luxeuil-Saint Sauveur AFB. There were no casualties.

The crew was performing a training mission from Dijon-Longvic AFB to Freiburg im Breisgau, West Germany. After passing over Vesoul, the radio contact was lost with the crew. A day later, the wreckage was found on the slope of a mountain located near Plancher-les-Mines, Haute-Saône. The aircraft was destroyed and all three crew members were killed. It was reported that the crew was completing a low-visibility-training-flight.
Cpt Riegel, instructor,
Sgt Ordinaire,
Cpt Morin.

Enroute, the crew encountered poor weather conditions with heavy snow falls. In low visibility, the aircraft hit tree tops, stalled and crashed in a snow covered field. All three crew were unhurt while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

During a bombing mission over Mannheim, the aircraft was hit by enemy fire but the crew was able to leave the zone and to fly over France. Eventually, the captain was forced to make an emergency landing and attempted to land in a field located in Villafans. But the aircraft crash landed and came to rest in flames. Three crew members were injured while the copilot was killed. Five other crew were unhurt. The aircraft was destroyed by fire.
Crew (486th BG):
F/O Robert F. Jarvis, pilot, †
2nd Lt Willis V. King,
Sgt Clayton M. Walker,
Sgt John W. Schmidt,
2nd Lt David D. Hill,
Sgt Gerald J. Christ,
Sgt Charles R. Forrest,
Sgt William O. Roselle,
Sgt Leo V. Davis.

The three engine airplane was engaged in a espionage and surveillance mission of the Luxeuil Airbase. In the early morning, the airplane was shot down by the pilots of five French fighters and crashed in a field located in Meurcourt, some 8 km west of Luxeuil Airfield. All nine occupants were killed. It was reported that the airplane deviated to the west from the Rhein due to unfavarable winds.

En route from Croydon to Basel, while cruising at an altitude of 10,000 feet over France, the crew encountered technical problems on both engines and reduced his altitude. Few minutes later, one engine fired and the captain attempted to make an emergency landing at Luxeuil-les-Bains AFB. On final, the crew lowered the gear and landed in a wheat field located in Saint-Sauveur, northeast of the airbase. Upon touchdown, the aircraft lost its undercarriage and slid for few dozen metres before coming to rest, bursting into flames. All 12 occupants evacuated safely and the airplane was destroyed by fire.

The airplane departed Zurich (Dübendorf) on a flight to Paris with an intermediate stop in Basel. It was carrying four chamois, 132 kilos of various goods, 239 kilos of gold and 20 kilos of mail. The crew departed Basel-Sternenfeld Airport at 1030LT in good weather conditions. But some 50 minutes into the flight, those conditions worsened and the visibility became poor due to fog. While cruising at an altitude of some 600 metres, the aircraft impacted trees and crashed in a wooded area located on a hillside in Étobon, 12 km west of Belfort. A passenger and the radio navigator were killed while all three other occupants were injured. A chamois should be killed due to his injuries while all three others animals went away. All goods, gold and mail were recovered. The aircraft was named 'L'Étoile d'argent'.
Crew:
Gaston Lafannechère, pilot,
Mr. Bloquet, mechanic,
Camille Suply, radio navigator.
The passenger killed was Mr. Werner Spoerri, a Swiss pharmacist leaving in Einsideln.