1952 — Nov 22, USAF MATS C-124 A Globemaster II crash, Mt. Gannett (9000 ft.), AK-52
–52 Aviation Safety Network, Accident Description. Douglas Globemaster II, Nov 22, 1952
–52 Baugher. 1951 USAF Serial Numbers. 11-7-2011 rev.
–52 D’Oro, Rachel. “Alaska glacier wreckage is 1950s military plane.” AP, 6-27-2012.
–52 Gero. Military Aviation Disasters: Significant Losses Since 1908. 1999, p. 55.
–52 Liefer, G. P. Broken Wings: Tragedy & Disaster in Alaska Civil Aviation. 2003, p. 237.
Narrative Information
ASN: “All 52 American servicemen aboard (41 passengers and a crew of 11) perished when the four-engine transport, which was bound for Elmendorf Air Force Base, near Anchorage, struck the south slope of Mount Gannett 50 miles (80km) east of its destination. The aircraft was being flown by the Military Air Transport Service (MATS) on a service from McChord Air Force Base, in Washington state, when it crashed at an approximate elevation of 9,000ft (2,700m), or about 1,000ft (300m) below the top of the mountain, disintegrated and burned.
“Located a few days later and subsequently identified, its wreckage lay buried in snow, and neither it nor the remains of the victims could be recovered. It was dark at the time of the accident, and the weather conditions in the area consisted of an indefinite ceiling of 600ft (180m), with a visibility of 2 miles (3km) in fog. The cross-winds encountered by 51-107A following its passage of Middleton Island may have been between 60 and 80 knots, more than double that forecast. Under the circumstances, the course correction made by the pilot would have been insufficient to compensate for the northward drift of the aircraft, which would account for its deviation from the proper track by some 30 miles (50km). The crew had been operating under an instrument flight rules clearance, but static and terrain features could have interfered with signals from the Elmendorf radio range station, and the crew had also faced icing conditions. Subsequently, the minimum height along the portion of the route where the disaster occurred was raised from 9,000 to 11,000ft (2,700-3,400m).” (Gero 1999, 55-56)
“Crashed into Surprise Glacier, near Mount Gannett. The wreckage was found on November 28.” Flight from Tacoma-McChord Air Force Base, to Anchorage-Elmendorf Air Force Base. No cause is provided.” [Notes that this was fifth worst aviation disaster at the time.]
(Aviation Safety Network. Douglas Globemaster II, Nov 22, 1952.)
Baugher: “Douglas C-124A-DL Globemaster II….107 crashed on Mt. Gannet near Anchorage, AK Nov 22, 1952. 52 killed.” (Baugher. 1951 USAF Serial Numbers. 11-7-2011 rev.)
Gero: “Date: 22 November 1952 (c.20:15)….
“Douglas C-124A (51-107A)
“All 52 American servicemen aboard (41 passengers and a crew of 11) perished when the four-engine transport, which was bound for Elmendorf Air Force Base, near Anchorage, struck the south slope of Mount Gannett 50 miles (80km) east of its destination. The aircraft was being flown by the Military Air Transport Service (MATS) on a service from McChord Air Force Base, in Washington state, when it crashed at an approximate elevation of 9,000ft (2,700m), or about 1,000ft (300m) below the top of the mountain, disintegrated and burned. Located a few days later and subsequently identified, its wreckage lay buried in snow, and neither it nor the remains of the victims could be recovered. It was dark at the time of the accident, and the weather conditions in the area consisted of an indefinite ceiling of 600ft (180m), with a visibility of 2 miles (3km) in fog. The cross-winds encountered by 51-107A following its passage of Middleton Island may have been between 60 and 80 knots, more than double that forecast. Under the circumstances, the course correction made by the pilot would have been insufficient to compensate for the northward drift of the aircraft, which would account for its deviation from the proper track by some 30 miles (50km). The crew had been operating under an instrument flight rules clearance, but static and terrain features could have interfered with signals from the Elmendorf radio range station, and the crew had also faced icing conditions. Subsequently, the minimum height along the portion of the route where the disaster occurred was raised from 9,000 to 11,000ft (2,700-3,400m).” (Gero. Military Aviation Disasters: Significant Losses Since 1908. 1999, p. 55.)
Newspaper
Nov 24: “Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, Nov. 24. (UP) – Search crews stymied by bad weather, hoped today that a faint radio signal came from a big transport believed down with 52 servicemen in Alaska’s ‘graveyard of airplanes’. The Air Force C-124 Globemaster vanished Sunday while it was attempting to land through heavy fog and wind after a flight from McChord Air Force Base, Wash. Search craft battled high winds and poor weather Sunday and returned to their bases Sunday night with negative results Sunday night the Air Force reported the Civil Aeronautics Administration station at Yakataga, Alaska, had picked up a distress signal on the 500 kilocycles band – the international SOS band….
“The ship was the third military aircraft to vanish in Alaska in less than three weeks.. If all those on board are lost, it would be the second worst disaster in the history of American military aviation….
The plane “was letting down through the turbulent ‘Southwest Passage’ for its landing here. The jinxed passage is a precarious approach on which a plane must dodge 5,000 to 6,000-foot peaks looming up off the ends of each wing tip.” (UP. “Bad Weather is Hampering Search Crews.” The Vidette-Messenger, Valparaiso Ind., 11-24-1952.)
Sources
Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. United States Air Force Globemaster II, Nov 22, 1952. Accessed 12-20-2008 at: http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19521122-0
Baugher, Joseph F. 1951 USAF Serial Numbers. Nov 7, 2011 update. Accessed 1-5-2012 at: http://www.joebaugher.com/usaf_serials/1951.html
D’Oro, Rachel. “Alaska glacier wreckage is 1950s military plane.” AP, 6-27-2012. Accessed at: http://news.yahoo.com/alaska-glacier-wreckage-1950s-military-plane-004308765.html
Gero, David. Military Aviation Disasters: Significant Losses Since 1908. UK and Newbury Park, CA: Patrick Stephens Limited, an imprint of Hayes Publishing, 1999.
Liefer, G. P. Broken Wings: Tragedy & Disaster in Alaska Civil Aviation. Blaine, WA: Hancock House, 2003.
United Press. “Bad Weather is Hampering Search Crews.” The Vidette-Messenger, Valparaiso Ind., 11-24-1952. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/freepdfviewer.aspx?img=16234707