1947 — Nov 28, off course USAF C-47 flies into Mt. Carbone, Alps near Cuneo, Italy — 20
Compiled by Wayne Blanchard 10-11-2023 for upload to: https://www.usdeadlyevents.com/
–22 New Castle News, PA. “Wreckage of plane lost in Nov. discovered in Alps.” 8-9-1948, p.1.
–21 Joplin Globe, MO. “Search Started For Lost Plane With 21 Aboard.” 11-30-1947, p. 1.
–21 The Bee, Danville, VA. “Plane With 21 Missing.” 11-29-1947, p. 1.
–20 Aviation Safety Network. US Air Force Douglas C-47B-6-DK crash…near Trappa.
–20 Baugher. 1943 USAAF Serial Numbers (43-5109 to 43-52437). 11-7-2011 revision.
–20 European Stars and Stripes, Germany. “Americans Reach C47 Crash…” 8-13-1948, p.1.
–20 European Stars and Stripes, Germany. “Rites Sunday for Airmen.” 8-19-1948, p. 12.
–20 Morning Avalanche, Lubbock TX. “Faint Radio Signals…Missing Transport.” 12-2-1947.
–20 Wisconsin State Journal, Madison. “Last Bodies Removed…Air Transport.” 8-18-1948, p2.
Narrative Information
Aviation Archaeological Investigation & Research: C-47B, 43-48736, 15th Troop Carrier Squadron, 61st Troop Carrier Group, Crash, Italian Alps. (Aviation Archaeological Investigation & Research. November 1947 USAF Accident Reports.)
Aviation Safety Network, Flight Safety Foundation, Database, 1947 (USAF C-47, 11-28-1947):
“Narrative: Crashed in the Italian Alps. The airplane was 30 miles off course. The wreckage was discovered eight months later.”
Baugher: “Douglas C-47B-5-DK….48736 (c/n 25997) completed as C-47B-6-DK. Crashed Nov. 28, 1947 near Trappa, Italy 30 miles off course in mountains, wreckage discovered eight months later, 20 onboard – all fatal.” (Baugher. 1943 USAAF Serial Numbers (43-5109 to 43-52437). 11-7-2011.)
Newspapers — Chronological
Nov 29, AP: “Frankfurt, Germany, Nov. 29. – (AP) – A United States Air Forces C-47 transport plane with 21 persons aboard is missing on a flight from Pisa, Italy, to Frankfurt, Air Force Headquarters at Wiesbaden announced today. The plane may be down in the Frankfurt area, headquarters said. The ship was carrying 37 passengers and four crewmen.” (The Bee, Danville, VA. “Plane With 21 Missing.” 11-29-1947, p. 1.)
Nov 29. AP: “Frankfurt, Germany, Nov. 29. – (AP) – Russian planes joined American aircraft today in a search for a U. S. air force C-47 transport plane with 21 persons aboard which has been missing since last night on a flight from Pisa, Italy, to Frankfurt. Air Forces headquarters at Wiesbaden said the crewmen and passengers aboard the twin-engine transport included 17 enlisted men, three officers and a war department civilian….” (Joplin Globe, MO. “Search Started For Lost Plane With 21 Aboard.” 11-30-1947, p. 1.)
Dec 1. AP: “Frankfurt, Germany, Dec. 1. (AP) – The U. -S. Air Force said tonight it had picked up faint radio signals which it, believed originated from a C-47 transport plane missing for three days with 20 persons aboard. Air Force headquarters said it believed the signals came from an area in the French zones of Germany, somewhere near Bad Kreuznach, 40 miles southwest of Frankfurt. The missing transport, which was on a routine flight from Pisa, Italy, to Frankfurt, has not been heard from since Friday night when the Berlin airport said it picked up ‘a broadcast asking the Frankfurt field for directions. More than 100 planes roved European skies, today searching for the missing aircraft.” (Morning Avalanche, Lubbock, TX. “Faint Radio Signals Believed Coming From Missing Transport.” 12-2-1947, p. 1.)
Aug 7, 1948, AP: “Frankfurt, Germany, Aug 7 (AP) – The wreckage of an American Army C-47 transport plane was found in the Italian Alps yesterday after it had been missing for more than eight months, the US Air Force said tonight. The two-motor plane disappeared last Nov. 28 with 22 persons aboard. Its wreckage was found 9,000 feet up in the rugged mountains of northern Italy. When the plane was reported overdue, Air Force headquarters at Wiesbaden said the crewmen and passengers aboard included 17 enlisted men, three officers and a war department civilian. Tonight’s announcement said there were 22 aboard the plane, one of them a woman employe of the War Department. An Air Force announcement said two bodies were found near the wreckage. The missing transport was found In the Alps, 55 miles south of Turin, Italy, the announcement said.
“The plane vanished while on a flight from Pisa, Italy, to Frankfurt. It was the object of an intensive search in the blinding snows of last winter. At one time, search parties combed the mountains of the French zone of Germany after false reports were received that a radio signal had been picked up from the missing craft in the area of Kaiserslautern.
“The Air Force announcement said heavy snows in the Italian alps had hindered search parties. It added that units of a Milan air and rescue organization were helping Air Force search parties en route to the wreckage. The announcement said it was assumed one party had found the plane and taken papers from two bodies found nearby. These papers were established as having belonged to persons who were aboard the C-47. The party which discovered the wreckage apparently returned to the lowlands for more aid yesterday.” (Amarillo News-Globe, TX. “C-47, Missing 8 Months, Found.” 8-8-1948, p. 27.)
Aug 9, 1948, INS: “Wiesbaden, Aug. 9. – (INS) –Air force officials today said the icy grip of the Alps may prolong recovery of a wrecked U. S. C-47 transport plane for more than a week. The plane, carrying 22 persons, vanished last November on a flight from Pisa, Italy, to Frankfort. The wreckage was discovered by Italian ski patrols two days ago in the snow-covered Alps mountain south of Turin. A special C-47 carrying a mountain climbing team, technicians and investigators, left today for Cuneo, Italy, near the scene of the crash.
“Latest reports said the clothing of two officers and the effects of the only woman passenger, as well as belongings of the pilots, already have been found strewn around the wreckage. The fact that only two bodies have been discovered appears to support the theory that many survivors lived a few days before inevitable death in the glacial wilderness. Italian patrols which found the plane believe these bodies may be entombed under snow still several feet high.” (New Castle News, PA. “Wreckage of Plane Lost in November Discovered in Alps.” 8-9-1948, p. 1.)
Aug 12, 1948, Stars and Stripes: “Cuneo, Italy, Aug. 12 (S&S) — Ten Americans scaled 9,000-foot Mt. Carbone in the Italian Alps today to reach the wreckage of a USAFE C47 which crashed there last Nov. 28 with 20 persons aboard. They found and identified the two bodies previously recovered by the Italian Alpine police who first located the wreckage and found parts of the plane scattered over a 1,000-yard area. Attempts at recovery of the other 18 bodies were started immediately. The two bodies already recovered were being brought down to Cuneo tonight.
“The identity of the plane was established definitely by the Americans. One engine was on top of a ridge and the other engine off on one side. Parts of the fuselage were spread over a wide section and parts were seen beneath the water of two small nearby lakes. The lakes are being searched for other parts. One wing was on top of the cliff but the other wing had not been definitely located late today because of the deep snow. Part of a broken radio was found but it had been damaged so badly the investigators fell it would give no clue to reports of radio messages from the lost ship. The radio log was burned and illegible. The plane’s seats were all at the bottom of the cliff and it was believed the bodies of the missing victims were in the snow there. Mine detectors have been brought here to help in the search for pieces of metal and the bodies…Alpine troops were digging at the base of the cliff today.
“Investigation indicated the plane had been flying north when it struck and exploded. Everything was smashed. One watch was found, damaged, with the hands pointing at 2:20, indicating the crash came at that time in the afternoon….
“To reach the scene, the Americans, first of their nationality to arrive there, left Cuneo shortly after 3 am today for their base camp and then scaled the mountainside by mule team – a six-hour climb. They had to leave the mules on the last part of the trip and climb by foot over rough and rocky terrain….” (European Stars and Stripes, Darmstadt, Germany. “Americans Reach C47 Crash Site; 2 Bodies Found.” 8-13-1948, p. 1.)
Aug 17, 1948, AP: “Rome (AP). – Fifteen bodies have been recovered from the wreckage of a U. S. Army transport plane that crashed last Nov. 28 on a 9,000-foot-high French-Alpine [Italian] border slope. Dispatches said Italian Alpine forces hoped to bring out the other seven or eight bodies – accounts differed as to whether the plane carried 22 or 23 persons – today or tomorrow.” (Syracuse Herald Journal, NY. “15 Bodies Removed from Plane Wreck.” 8-17-1948, p. 6.)
Aug 18, 1948, UP: “Cuneo, Italy – (UP) – The last five bodies of the 20 Americans who were killed last November in the crash of a U.S. Army C-47 transport on Mount Carbonnet were removed from the wreckage of the plane today. A mass funeral service will be held Saturday attended by high American Air force officials and Italian military men…” (Wisconsin State Journal, Madison. “Last Bodies Removed from Air Transport.” 8-18-1948, p. 2.)
Aug 18. 1948, Stars and Stripes: “Rhine-Main, Aug. 18 (S&S) — Memorial services for the 20 victims of the C47 crash in Italy last November will be held here Sunday, USAFE HQ. announced today.
“Cuneo, Aug. 18 (UP) – The search for bodies of victims of the USAFE C47 which crashed on Mount Carbone last November ended today after all 20 dead had been recovered. Lt Col Daniel F. Riva, who directed the rescue, thanked Italian officers and soldiers who assisted. Most of the work was done by the 11th Co. of the Saluzzo Bn.
“The last seven bodies recovered were scheduled to be transported to Cuneo today.
“It was established that two of the victims had survived the crash of the plane, but succumbed later. The leg of one of them was broken and bound with a necktie and had medicine on it. Another was heavily dressed in woolens with which he apparently sought to fight the cold of the 9,000-foot altitude.
“Meanwhile, Air Force officials issued a list of seven more names of the crash victims as definitely established. Identified bodies now total nine. They are:
Lt Alfred H. Martinson, Williamsburg, Iowa;
Maj Frank Lawrence, San Francisco, Calif.;
Sgt Elzie C. Luster,
Sgt Owen W. Tryee,
Sgt Mervell Sherer,
Sgt Thomas D. Petor,
Sgt Donald G. Ryan,
Sgt Abram S. Atkins, Sperryville, Miss., and
Sgt Harmon Newell, Kermit, Texas.”
(European Stars and Stripes, Germany. “Rites Sunday for Airmen.” 8-19-1948, p. 12.)
Sources
Amarillo News-Globe, TX. “C-47, Missing 8 Months, Found.” 8-8-1948, p. 27. At: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=77335808
Aviation Safety Network. Accident description. United States Air Force Douglas C-47B-6-DK… near Trappa…28 Nov 1947. Accessed 10-11-2023 at:
https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19471128-0
Baugher, Joseph F. 1943 USAAF Serial Numbers (43-5109 to 43-52437). Nov 7, 2011 revision. Accessed 12-18-2011 at: http://www.joebaugher.com/usaf_serials/1943_2.html
European Stars and Stripes, Darmstadt, Germany. “Americans Reach C47 Crash Site; 2 Bodies Found,” 8-13-1948, p. 1. At: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=133380795
European Stars and Stripes, Darmstadt, Germany. “Rites Sunday for Airmen.” 8-19-1948, p. 12. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=133380891
Joplin Globe, MO. “Search Started For Lost Plane With 21 Aboard.” 11-30-1947, p. 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=1807806
Morning Avalanche, Lubbock, TX. “Faint Radio Signals Believed Coming From Missing Transport.” 12-2-1947, p. 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=107714997
New Castle News, PA. “Wreckage of Plane Lost in November Discovered in Alps.” 8-9-1948, 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=61951839
Syracuse Herald-Journal, NY. “15 Bodies Removed from Plane Wreck.” 8-17-1948, p. 6. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=22690933
The Bee, Danville, VA. “Plane With 21 Missing.” 11-29-1947, p. 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=108930508
Wisconsin State Journal, Madison. “Last Bodies Removed from Air Transport.” 8-18-1948, p. 2. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=100061253