MW126

Safety history

• November 14, 1944Accident

  The aircraft was on its way to Kandy, Ceylon, with a crew of 7 and three passengers on board, among them Air Chief Marshal Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory and his wife. While flying east of Grenoble at an altitude of 8,000 feet, the crew encountered poor weather conditions with snowstorm and fog. The crew elected to return but the Air Marshal insisted to continue. Shortly later, the four engine aircraft hit the slope of a mountain located 2 km west of Le Rivier d'Allemont and was totally destroyed. A

  Avro 685 York · 10 fatalities

  A court of inquiry found that the accident was a consequence of bad weather and might have been avoided if Leigh-Mallory had not insisted that the flight proceed in such poor conditions against the advice of his aircrew Full accident record