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 The aft section of the aircraft involved in the accident | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 14 October 1953 (1953-10-14) |
| Summary | Loss of engine power on takeoff, loss of control |
| Site | 3 km north of Frankfurt |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Convair CV-240-12 |
| Operator | Sabena |
| Registration | OO-AWQ |
| Flight origin | Salzburg Airport, Austria |
| Stopover | Frankfurt International Airport, West Germany |
| Destination | Brussel-Zaventem Airport, Belgium |
| Occupants | 44 |
| Passengers | 40 |
| Crew | 4 |
| Fatalities | 44 |
| Survivors | 0 |
On 14 October 1953, a Sabena Convair CV-240 crashed 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) north of Frankfurt, West Germany, shortly after taking off from Frankfurt International Airport. All 44 occupants on board the aircraft were killed.
Aircraft
The Convair CV-240-12 involved was built in 1949 with serial number 154 and registration OO-AWQ and was used by the Belgian airline company Sabena from 1 April 1949 until its destruction in 1953.
Crash
After having arrived from Salzburg Airport for her stopover, the Sabena flight was scheduled to depart from Frankfurt International Airport bound for Zaventem Airport with 40 passengers and four crew members on board at 15.20 pm on 14 October 1953. However shortly after takeoff, the crew noticed that both engines were losing power. The crew followed the normal procedures and raised the flaps while trying to keep control of their plane. The aircraft ultimately became uncontrollable and stalled, crashing in a wooded area near Kelsterbach about two miles north of the airport she departed from. Firefighters and four ambulances reached the crash scene after following the rising smoke plume but it was quickly discovered that all 44 onboard had perished in the flaming wreckage.
Cause
The cause of the crash was determined to possibly be a heavy deposit of lead on the spark plugs in the engines. The investigation states that as the plugs warmed up during takeoff, the metal deposits formed a circuit which ended up short circuiting the plugs causing the fatal engine failure and subsequent stalling and crash of the aircraft. It is unknown whether the pilots actions contributed to the crash or if the fatal outcome was unavoidable.
Aftermath
The aircraft was destroyed by the impact and post-crash fire with only pieces of debris scattered around the wooded area. The crash site was documented on film on 21 October by the German press.
References
- ^ "Accident description". aviation-safety.net. 1996. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- "REGISTRATION DETAILS FOR OO-AWQ (SABENA) CONVAIR CV-240-240-12". planelogger.com. 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- "1949 Convair 240-12 Liner C/N 154". airport-data.com. 2004. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- "ACCIDENT DETAILS". planecrashinfo.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- "Plane Crash Kills 40 In Germany". trove.nla.gov.au. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- "OO-AWQ". skystef.be. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- "Crash of a Convair CV-240-12 in Frankfurt: 44 killed". baaa-acro.com. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
| Aviation accidents and incidents in Germany | |||||||||
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| German Empire (1871–1918) |
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| Nazi Germany (1933–1945) |
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| Occupied Germany (1945–1949) |
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| West Germany and West Berlin (1949–1990) |
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| East Germany (1949–1990) |
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| Germany (1990–) |
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| Aviation incidents that took place in West Berlin, or involved an approach for there, are marked with an asterisk (*). | |||||||||
| Aviation accidents and incidents in 1953 (1953) | |
|---|---|
| Jan 5 Nutts Corner Viking accidentJan 7 Associated Air Transport Trip 1-6-6AJan 15 RAF Mediterranean Sea mid-air collisionFeb 2 Skyways Avro YorkFeb 14 National Airlines Flight 470Mar 12 Avro Lincoln shootdown incidentMar 20 Transocean Air Lines Flight 942Apr 20 Western Air Lines Flight 636May 2 BOAC Flight 783May 17 Delta Air Lines Flight 318May 27 Kemerovo mid-air collisionJun 14 Aeroflot Flight 229Jun 18 Tachikawa air disasterJul 12 Transocean Air Lines Flight 512Jul 17 USMC R4Q NROTC crashAug 3 Air France Flight 152Sep 1 Air France Flight 178Sep 16 American Airlines Flight 723Oct 14 Sabena Convair CrashOct 27 Aeroflot Flight 783Oct 29 BCPA Flight 304Nov 23 Felix Moncla | |
| 1952 ◄ ► 1954 |