Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3) accident at Oujda-Angad, Morocco, 3 Jun 1944 (FD886)
On June 3, 1944, a Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3) (registration FD886) operated by Royal Air Force - RAF was involved in an aviation accident near Oujda-Angad, Morocco during landing or approach. 16 people were killed. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: An Inquiry into the accident found that "the accident was a gross error of judgement by the pilot in flying blind unnecessarily when uncertain of his position, and for the navigator’s poor navigation who did not use all means at his disposal.". This summary draws on records from the Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A); 8 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.
Probable cause
An Inquiry into the accident found that "the accident was a gross error of judgement by the pilot in flying blind unnecessarily when uncertain of his position, and for the navigator’s poor navigation who did not use all means at his disposal."
— NTSB Determination
Accident narrative
The aircraft left Biskra at 0643LT on a routine transport flight to Oujda. Five minutes before its own signaled ETA, the pilot took advantage of a hole in the cloud over which he had been flying for some considerable time, to get below the cloud. Upon breaking cloud, the aircraft was seen to circle in a valley. Unaccountably, the aircraft was seen to turn to port and climb into cloud away from a road and valley, which was clear, with visibility 4 to 5 miles below cloud. The mountaintop was covered by drifting cloud at the time and the aircraft was climbing steeply when it crashed. It crashed into the side of a mountain, killing 16 on board. One passenger survived. Source: http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19440603-2
Probable cause (official findings): An Inquiry into the accident found that "the accident was a gross error of judgement by the pilot in flying blind unnecessarily when uncertain of his position, and for the navigator’s poor navigation who did not use all means at his disposal."