What happened
The incident involved a three-engine aircraft operating out of Pisa Airport. The crew was conducting a routine training sortie when the accident occurred. While cruising in the vicinity of Viareggio, the aircraft came under fire from the crew of a German cargo ship named 'Nicoline Maersk'. The vessel's personnel mistakenly identified the friendly aircraft as a hostile target and engaged it. Struck by the gunfire, the plane lost control and crashed into the sea. All five members of the crew perished in the accident. Recovery efforts were limited, with some debris from the wreckage eventually located in 1984.
Findings
The official investigation concluded that the loss was due to a friendly fire incident. The primary contributing factor was the mistaken identification of the training aircraft by the personnel aboard the cargo ship, leading to the accidental discharge of weapons against a non-hostile target.