Incident Overview
A U.S. Navy patrol aircraft crashed into the Atlantic Ocean while returning to Argentia-Bristol Field Naval Air Station after an uneventful patrol flight over the North Atlantic. The accident occurred as the aircraft approached the coast of Newfoundland in poor weather conditions. The airplane went out of control and crashed into the water.
Wreckage and Recovery
Search efforts recovered few debris floating on the water off Cape Race, located on the southeastern part of Newfoundland. The wreckage was limited, and no survivors were found.
Crew
The nine crew members killed in the crash were identified as:
- Ltjg Billie M. Wertz, pilot
- Ltjg David Hardy, copilot
- Ltjg William T. Flynn, navigator
- Ad2 George P. Smith
- At2 Daniel R. Carlson
- Adr3 Lee Calvin Ashburn
- Ao1 Rocco S. Sallesa
- At1 Stillman Schulze Jr.
- Ams2 Don O. Voland