1951 — April 8, West VA National Guard Plane flies into terrain ~Charleston, WV –all 21

— 21 Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. USAF, 09 Apr 1951.
— 21 Baugher. 1943 USAAF Serial Numbers (43-5109 to 43-52437). 11-7-2011 revision.
— 21 Gero. Military Aviation Disasters: Significant Losses Since 1908. 1999, p. 50.
— 21 West Virginia Division of Culture and History, “April 8, 1951: National Guard Plane…”

Narrative Information

Baugher: “Douglas C-47B-1-DK….48298 (c/n 25559) struck tree on finals near Charleston, WVa Apr 8, 1951. 21 killed.” (Baugher. 1943 USAAF Serial Numbers (43-5109 to 43-52437). 11-7-2011.)

Gero: “The 21 West Virginia airmen aboard a military C-47 transport plane had little warning before their plane crashed and burned on April 8, 1951. The plane crashed just 20 minutes after its pilot radioed air traffic controllers that he would attempt to land at Charleston’s Kanawha Airport. The plane slammed into a hillside near Little Sandy Creek, north of Charleston. It skidded about 400 feet through mud and heavy underbrush and one wing was torn off before the plane erupted in flames.

“Seven officers and twelve enlisted men died on impact and two officers were thrown clear of the wreckage but died later of severe burns. The airmen were from Kentucky’s Godman Air Force Base, where they were training for overseas duty during the Korean War. All but one of the dead were West Virginians, most from the Charleston area.

“The plane was one of two on its way to Kanawha County for the funeral of a colleague, Major Jock Sutherland of St. Albans, who had died three days before in a plane collision in Florida. Both planes carried 21 airmen and were expected to land just after noon. The other plane returned to Kentucky after learning of the crash.

“The death toll equaled West Virginia’s worst aviation accident involving a military plane. In 1942, another transport plane had crashed into a mountain near Welch in McDowell County, also killing 21.” (West Virginia Division of Culture and History, “April 8, 1951: National Guard…”)

“In his last radio message, the pilot reported being on the outbound track and making a proce-dural turn during the automatic direction finder (ADF) instrument procedure approach to Runway 23. Subsequently, the C-47 struck a wooded hillside at an approximate elevation of 1,200ft (350m), the impact with the trees shearing off both its wings, and burst into flames. The local weather at the time consisted of an overcast estimated at 1,000ft (300 m), with scattered clouds down to 200ft (60m), a visibility of 3 miles (5km) and a west-south-westerly wind of 10 knots. The cause of the accident was not revealed by military authorities. Significantly, the aircraft’s instrument landing system indicator was reported by the pilot to have been inoperative, which would have prevented him from making a precision approach.” (Gero 1999, pp. 50-51)

Sources

Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. United States Air Force, 09 Apr 1951. Accessed at: http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19510408-0

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

Gero, David. Military Aviation Disasters: Significant Losses Since 1908. UK and Newbury Park, CA: Patrick Stephens Limited, an imprint of Hayes Publishing, 1999.

The Charleston Gazette, WV. “19 Area Airmen Killed as C-47 Crashes Near Kanawha Airport.” 4-9-1951, p. 1. Accessed 6-18-2023 at: West Virginia Archives and History. “On This Day in West Virginia History.” http://www.wvculture.org/history/timetrl/ttapr.html#0407

West Virginia Division of Culture and History. Time Trail, West Virginia. “April 8, 1951: National Guard Plane Crash at Charleston.” Accessed at: http://www.wvculture.org/history/timetrl/ttapr.html#0407