Accident Overview
Shortly after takeoff from Calcutta-Dum Dum Airport, while in initial climb, the port engine failed. The aircraft pitched up, stalled, and ultimately crashed in a coconut grove approximately one kilometer from the airfield. The aircraft was destroyed in the accident.
Casualties and Damage
All three crew members and two passengers were killed. Six other occupants sustained injuries. The aircraft was destroyed.
Probable Cause
The official investigation determined the probable cause of the accident was:
- Delay in feathering after failure of the port engine (due to inexperience of the pilot in emergency procedures), which resulted in a loss of height.
- The subsequent attempt to establish a climb with a nose-high attitude (to get over obstructions), below the recommended single-engine rate of climb speed, with both gear and flaps up.
- The progressive loss of airspeed which finally resulted in a stall on a coconut tree.
Although the profuse smoke emanating from the port engine was due to the engine failure, the primary cause of that failure could not be determined.