1944 – Nov 18, USAAF B-24J Plane Crash 5M south of March Field, Riverside, CA  —     11

Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 3-15-2024 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/

–11  Mireles 2006. Fatal Army AF Aviation Accidents…US…, V3, Aug 1944-Dec 1945, p. 974.

–11  Oakland Tribune, CA. “Eleven Die When Big Plane Crashes.” 11-19-1944, p. 1.

Narrative Information

 

Mireles: “At 1900, a Consolidated B-24J crashed five miles south of March Field, Riverside, California, killing 11 fliers. The air­plane had taken off from March Field on a bombing and gunnery mission. After successfully completing the mission, the airplane returned to the area of March Field and the pilot was instructed to fly around the local area at 12,000 feet. The pilot had reported to tower per­sonnel that he had had some overheating in one of his engines earlier in the flight but the trouble had cleared up and the engine was performing satisfactorily. Ap­proximately ten minutes later the B-24 was seen in a steep inverted dive, passing close to an airplane flying at 8,000 feet before smashing into the ground and exploded into flames. Investigators stated,

 

The aircraft went out of control at approximately 12,000 feet for an undetermined reason…. Examination of the wreck­age indicated that the aircraft had been in a spin when it struck the ground, in that the position of the wings indicated a rotating impact. The tail turret was thrown backwards from the rest of the wreckage and indicated that it had struck the ground with great force, probably caused by the aircraft striking in a nose-down, inverted position. It was also determined that the left elevator had disintegrated long enough before the crash for parts of fabric and ribs to have come off and land 1,800 to 2,000 feet away.”  (Mireles 2006. P. 974.)

 

Newspaper

 

Nov 18, Associated Press: “March Field, Nov. 18. – (AP) – Eleven persons were killed when an Army B-24 bomber, based her, crashed and burned tonight, five miles south of the field….” (Oakland Tribune, CA. “Eleven Die When Big Plane Crashes.” 11-19-1944, p. 1.)

 

Sources

 

Mireles, Anthony J.  Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945 (Volume 3:  August 1944 – December 1945). Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Co., 2006.

 

Oakland Tribune, CA. “Eleven Die When Big Plane Crashes.” 11-19-1944, p. 1. Accessed 10-4-2012 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=33495987