FD886

Safety history

• June 3, 1944Accident

  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 cover

  Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3) · 16 fatalities

  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." Full accident record