Accident Details
On the night of the accident, visibility was 2,000 yards at Calcutta-Dum Dum Airport. The crew of a C-47 cargo aircraft received permission to line up on runway 01L for a cargo flight to Pasighat. One minute later, while the aircraft was on the runway, it was struck by an Airwork Handley Page H.P.81 Hermes IV/A that was landing on the same runway. The collision destroyed the C-47 upon impact. The Hermes came to a stop a few dozen yards further and was later deemed damaged beyond repair.
Crew and Aircraft
The C-47 was carrying four crew members, all of whom were killed in the accident. The Hermes was operated by Airwork. No further details about the aircraft or crew were provided in the report.
Probable Cause
The official investigation found that the probable cause was an error by the commander of the Hermes aircraft. Specifically, the commander turned down the radio telephone (R/T) during the final stage of a radar-assisted approach and decided to continue the approach under circumstances that prevented him from positively identifying the correct runway.