1958 Central African Airways plane crash

Central African Airways

A Vickers Viscount type plane
Accident summary
Date 9 August 1958
Summary Pilot error
Site Near Benina International Airport in Libya
Passengers 47
Crew 7
Injuries (non-fatal) Unknown
Fatalities 36
Survivors 18
Aircraft type Vickers Viscount
Operator Central African Airways
Registration VP-YNE "Mpika"
Flight origin Wadi Halfa Airport, Sudan
Destination Benina International Airport, Libya

The 1958 Central African Airways plane crash occurred when a Vickers Viscount airliner crashed during a scheduled passenger flight from Wadi Halfa, Sudan, to Benghazi, Libya, on 9 August 1958 about nine kilometers southeast of Benina International Airport in Libya.[1]

A total of forty-seven passengers and seven crew members were on board of whom only eighteen survived, making it the deadliest ever plane crash in Libya at the time of the accident.[2]

Cause of the crash

According to an International Civil Aviation Organization accident digest, the plane crashed when making an approach to runway 33 Right and, while flying in clouds the pilot descended below the appropriate height, causing the aircraft to crash into high ground. While the reason for the quick descent remains unknown, it is believed the pilot may have misinterpreted the reading of his altimeter as a result of fatigue and possible indisposition.[2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "34 believed lost in airplane crash" (scan). The Gettysburg Times. Vol. 56 (№ 189). AP. 9 August 1958. p. 3. Retrieved 17 August 2015 – via news.google.com.
  2. 1 2 Accident description via Aviation Safety Network (Original source "ICAO Accident Digest, Circular 59-AN/54 (171-178)). Retrieved 17 August 2015

External links

Coordinates: 32°05′49″N 20°16′10″E / 32.09694°N 20.26944°E / 32.09694; 20.26944

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