1943 – July 28, USAAF B-24 emer. lndg. approach crash 12M N Biggs Field, El Paso, TX–11
Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 5-4-2024 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/
–11 Lubbock Morning Avalanche, TX. “Twenty Killed in Airplane Crashes.” 7-30-1943, p. 3.
–11 Mireles 2006. Fatal Army AF Aviation Accidents…US…, V2, July 1943-July 1944, p. 454.
Narrative Information
Mireles: “At 1902 MWT, a Consolidated B-24E [Liberator] crashed 12 miles north of Biggs Field, El Paso, Texas, killing eleven fliers and seriously injuring another. The Accident Classification Committee stated,
At approximately 1854 MWT B-24E aircraft #41-29037 called to the Biggs Field Control Tower and asked permission to make an emergency landing, reporting that his No. 1 engine was feathered, his position was five miles east of the field, and at an altitude of 8,000 feet. The operator gave the aircraft permission to make a right-hand traffic pattern and an emergency landing on Runway 17. The tower operator at El Paso Municipal Airport received this call on a military frequency and watched the aircraft through field glasses as it circled Biggs Field to the right, slowly losing altitude during the circuit. He reported that the aircraft, when about 15 miles north of the field, turned to the right, continuing to lose altitude until it struck the ground and burst into flames.
From the statements of witnesses who were within a few miles of the scene of the crash and had observed the aircraft for a few minutes before the crash, the aircraft appeared to be losing altitude, with its three engines that were running, laboring. One witness stated that the right wing tipped twice and then at about 200 feet the left wing tipped about 70 degrees and the aircraft struck the ground. The crash occurred with the landing gear retracted. The aircraft burned immediately upon impact and was completely wrecked. A gunner riding in the rear of the aircraft was able to walk away from the crash. The immediate cause of the accident was determined to be the loss of flying speed and stalling from a low altitude. The underlying cause was determined to be the loss of the No. 1 engine aggravated by improper load distribution.” (Mireles 2006, Vol. 2, July 1943-July 1944, p. 454.)
Newspaper
July 29, Associated Press: “El Paso, July 29. (AP) – Twenty officers and enlisted men from Biggs field and Fort Bliss were killed and one was injured in two plane crashes, the air field public relations office announced today.
“Eleven men were killed and one injured when a four-engined bomber crashed ten miles east of
Biggs field last night,” (Lubbock Morning Avalanche, TX. “Twenty Killed in Airplane Crashes.” 7-30-1943, p. 3.)
Sources
Mireles, Anthony J. Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945 (Volume 2: July 1943 – July 1944). Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Co., 2006.
Lubbock Morning Avalanche, TX. “Twenty Killed in Airplane Crashes.” 7-30-1943, p. 3. Accessed 10-4-2012 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=110727949