No fatalities

1973-10-25: Douglas DC-6 (N614SE) — Span East Airlines — Biscayne Bay, United States of America

Biscayne Bay, United States of AmericaFlight

On October 25, 1973, a Douglas DC-6 (registration N614SE) operated by Span East Airlines was involved in an aviation accident near Biscayne Bay, United States of America in flight. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: Failure of all four engines due to fuel exhaustion. The following factors were reported: fuel leak, mismanagement of fuel, inattentive to fuel supply, improper in-flight planning, fuel exhaustion, failure of all four engines, forced landing off airport on… This summary draws on records from the Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A); 5 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

Sourcesthe Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A)Primary reportUpdated 1781232155Data APIEditorial standards

A Guyana Airways cargo flight from Georgetown to Miami ditched into Biscayne Bay after all four engines failed due to fuel exhaustion, following a fuel leak. All three crew members were rescued.

Accident

During a night cargo flight from Georgetown, Guyana, to Miami, Florida, operating on behalf of Guyana Airways, the crew detected a fuel leak on the number 3 main fuel system. Despite this, the crew decided to continue towards Miami. Minutes later, all four engines failed. Realizing that reaching Miami was no longer possible, the crew reduced altitude and ditched the aircraft into Biscayne Bay. All three crew members were rescued, while the aircraft sank and was lost.

Probable Cause

The official investigation determined the probable cause to be failure of all four engines due to fuel exhaustion. Contributing factors reported include: fuel leak, mismanagement of fuel, inattentiveness to fuel supply, improper in-flight planning, fuel exhaustion, failure of all four engines, forced landing off airport on water, leak on number 3 main fuel system, and overflight of Nassau and Bimini with low fuel.