1953 — Mar 20, Transocean Air 942 (military charter) approach crash, NE of Alvarado, CA–all 35

–35 AirDisaster.com. Accident Database. “Accident Synopsis 03201953.”
–35 Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. Transocean Air Lines, 20 Mar 1953.
–35 Baugher. 1945 USAAF Serial Numbers. Sep 21, 2011 revision.
–35 Civil Aero. Board. AIR. Transocean Air Lines, Alvarado, California, March 20, 1953.
–35 NFPA. “Worst No. American Aircraft Fires – 1953.” Quarterly of…, 47/3, Jan 1954, p.311.
–35 Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1950s.”
–35 Oakland Tribune, CA. “20 Plane Victims Named.” 3-21-1953, p. 2.

Narrative Information

AirDisaster.com: “Enroute to Oakland, the aircraft crashed into a barley field after the aircraft accumulated ice to the point of a loss of control.” (AirDisaster.com. Accident Database. Synopsis 03201953.)

Baugher: “Douglas C-54G-10-DO Skymaster….623 (c/n 36076/DO470) to Pan American Airways as N88942 ‘Clipper Bostonian’. Leased to Transocean Airlines as N88942, w/o March 20 1953 when it lost control shortly after descending through 3500 feet in a drizzling rain while on approach to Oakland International Airport from Roswell, New Mexico enroute to the Pacific Island of Guam. The aircraft was seen descending in a right wing low slipping attitude until it struck the ground near Alvarado, California. The aircraft cartwheeled across an Alvarado barley field and disintegrated in flames. All 35 aboard were killed. Investigators determined that the prevailing meteorological (weather) conditions probably resulted in an accumulation of ice on the aircraft’s control surfaces, which became immobilized and caused the flight crew to lose control of the plane. At the time, Transocean Air Lines was the world’s largest nonscheduled air carrier, airlifting thousands of military personnel and tons of supplies to Korea. It entered bankruptcy in 1962.” (Baugher. 1945 USAAF Serial Numbers. Sep 21, 2011 revision.)

Civil Aeronautics Board: “A Douglas DC-4 aircraft, N 88942, owned and operated by Transocean Air Lines, crashed in a field near Alvarado, California, at approximately 1838, 1 March 20, 1953. All of the 35 occupants including the crew of five were killed. The aircraft was demolished.

“Transocean Air Lines Flight 942 of March 20, 1953, departed Roswell, New Mexico, at 1211 for Oakland, California. On board were 30 military passengers and a crew [ of five]….

“Investigation revealed that the aircraft crashed in a large flat field located three miles on a magnetic bearing of 323 degrees from the Newark compass locator and one and one-half miles northeast of the town of Alvarado, California. The surrounding terrain consisted of flat farm land on which were a few scattered houses, fences, and trees. The elevation of the field is approximately 17 feet MSL.

“The aircraft first struck the ground on its right wing tip and with the wing in a near vertical position, then cartwheeled and disintegrated. Wreckage was scattered over an area approximately 800 feet long and 300 feet wide. Due to impact forces and the resultant fire, the aircraft broke into numerous small pieces, many of which were destroyed by fire with only two large sections of the aircraft remaining after the crash….

“Approximately three minutes elapsed between the time the flight was cleared to descend [at Oakland] and the message that it was leaving 8,000 feet. This is not an unusually long period of time for the crew to begin descent after receipt of descent clearance as it is not known at what point in the holding pattern the aircraft received permission to descend. This holding pattern is a one-minute right elliptical track to be made southeast of the Newark compass locator on the east side of the southeast course of the Oakland range. If the aircraft was headed toward the southeast when the clearance was received, the captain may have, for reasons of his own, elected to complete his turn and head northwest toward the compass locator before he began his descent. Since the wind at 7,000 feet was reported as from 280 degrees at 55 miles per hour, this may have further reduced the ground speed on the approach to the locator and may possibly justify the three minutes involved. Once the descent was started, the flight reported leaving each 1,000-foot level until the final report stating that it was over the Newark compass locator at 3,500 feet in-bound at 1836. None Of these reports indicated that the flight was experiencing any difficulty nor did it declare an emergency at any time. The descent was made from 8,000 feet to 3,500 feet in six minutes at an approximate rate of 750 feet per minute. Although the descent to this level was made at a rate almost double that which Chief Pilot Rodgers instructed the company’s pilots to use with passengers aboard, 750 feet per minute is well within safe limits. It is possible that because the crew was being checked, Pilot Rodgers purposely withheld criticism of their flying technique until the flight was completed.

“All known facts indicate that the aircraft became uncontrollable almost immediately after the report leaving 3,500 feet was made. One, the accident occurred at a point about three miles inbound from the Newark compass locator and about two minutes after the last report was made; this necessitated an abnormal rate of descent of approximately 1,750 feet per minute. Two, witnesses agreed that the aircraft, when first seen beneath the clouds, was in a steep right wing low slipping attitude and that it remained in this attitude until striking the ground.

“What caused the aircraft to become uncontrollable is not known…. [A] possible cause of the accident could have been the accumulation of ice on the surfaces of the aircraft in sufficient magnitude to have caused loss of control since the flight had flown for a considerable period of time above 5,000 feet in an area in which icing conditions prevailed. It is also apparent that the loss of control did not occur until after the pilot had made his routine report over the Newark fan marker at 3,500 feet. Had the aircraft been subjected to such a heavy icing condition, the ice could not have dissipated during the short period of time involved in making the descent despite the warmer temperature below 5,000 feet and the proper functioning of the aircrafts deicer equipment….

“Although the Board cannot state definitely that aircraft ice probably caused this accident, it is apparent that if the crew did not appreciate the seriousness of ice accretion and take preventive measures at once, the performance of the aircraft could have rapidly been reduced to a dangerous degree relative to control and stall speeds. It is recognized, however, that several other circumstances might have been involved, the evidence of which could have been destroyed by the impact and fire.” (CAB. AIR. Transocean Air Lines, Alvarado, California, March 20, 1953.)

National Fire Protection Association: “Mar. 20, Alvarado, Calif., Trans-Ocean Air Lines, DC-4, $500,000, 35 Killed.

“The four engine DC-4, en route with service men aboard from Roswell, N.M., to Oakland, crashed and burned, as it circled a hill in making its approach for landing. An eye witness reported seeing passengers with their clothes on fire trying to evacuate the fuselage but none succeeded in escaping. The aircraft burned for some time after the crash, the location being inaccessible to fire fighting equipment….Trans-Ocean Air Lines is a large no-scheduled air carrier. The CAB could not determine the cause of the accident other than apparent loss of control during descent.” (NFPA. “Worst No. American Aircraft Fires – 1953.” Quarterly of the NFPA, V. 47, N. 3, Jan 1954, p. 311.

Notable California Aviation Disasters:
“1953 Date / Time: Friday, March 20, 1953 / 6:38 p.m.

”Operator / Flight No.: Transocean Air Lines / Flight 942

”Location: Alvarado, Calif.

“Details and Probable Cause: Carrying 30 airmen and a crew of five, the four-engine Douglas C-54G-10-DO transport (N88942), a derivative of the DC-4 airliner, was bound for the Pacific island of Guam from Roswell, New Mexico, with an intermediate stop at Oakland Municipal Airport.

“As the aircraft neared Oakland at an altitude of 3,500 feet in a drizzling rain, it suddenly rolled to the right and, in a near-vertical position, struck the ground with its right wingtip. The aircraft cartwheeled across an Alvarado barley field and disintegrated in flames. All 35 aboard were killed.

“The airmen on board were all specialists from Walker Air Force Base in Roswell, bound for a tour of duty with the 509th Bomber Wing. The crew of five — three pilots and two stewardesses — were civilians.

“The crash site was not too far from the Decoto (now a part of Union City) area, where a United Air Lines DC-6B crashed on August 24, 1951…

“Investigators determined that the prevailing meteorological (weather) conditions possibly resulted in an accumulation of ice on the aircraft’s control surfaces, which became immobilized and caused the flight crew to lose control of the plane.

“At the time, Transocean Air Lines was the world’s largest nonscheduled air carrier, airlifting thousands of military personnel and tons of supplies to Korea as part of the Korean War effort. It entered bankruptcy in 1962.

“Fatalities: 35.” (Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1950s.”)

Newspapers

March 21, Oakland Tribune: “Investigators failed today to turn up a single clue to the cause of the disastrous crash last-night of a Transocean Air Lines DC-4 in a muddy Alvarado barley field. Thirty Air Force men and the crew of five, including two stewardesses, died as the plane dropped out of the overcast and burned in the level field.

“An exhaustive investigation was being organized this afternoon, but cursory examination of the scene today produced nothing that would shed light on the accident, according to Samuel Wilson, executive vice-president of Transocean.

“The pilot of the plane was Transocean’s chief pilot and Wilson said he would ‘almost rule out the possibility of pilot error.’ ‘He was not only our chief pilot but our best pilot,’ Wilson said.

“The tragic crash came when the plane was less than 12 miles from a landing at Oakland Municipal Airport and only two minutes after the pilot had made normal radio contact with the Civil Aeronautics Administration control tower without reporting trouble.

“The four-engine airliner, arriving from Walker Air Force Base at Roswell, N.M., en route to Guam, was on the ‘beam’ for its instrument approach to Oakland Airport when, according to eye witnesses, it went into a steep left bank, dropped to earth and cartwheeled, then burst into flames….

“The 30 dead airmen were maintenance specialists of the 509th Bomb Wing assigned to Guam after completing training at the Roswell Field….” (Oakland Tribune, CA. “20 Plane Victims Named.” 3-21-1953, p. 2.)

March 21, AP: “Roswell, N.M., March 21. – (AP) Walker Air Force Base released this list of names of the dead in last night’s DC-4 crash near Oakland, Calif.:

S Sgt. Kenneth B. Shapiro, 22…Roswell, N.M.,
A/1c Robert E. Hitchcock, 22, son of George Hitchcock, 1712 Wood, Wheeling, W.Va.
A/1c James E. McClanahan, son of Mr. and Mrs. Glenn McClanahan…Morristown, Tn.
A/2c Norman E. Wilson, 21, son of Mr. and Mrs. Jackson Wilson…East St. Louis, Ill.
A/2c Ammya B. Placker, 21, son of Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Placker…Alamogordo, N.M.
A/3c Joseph W. Madigan, 21, son of Joseph Madigan…East Aurora, N.Y.
A/1c Bernard J. Rolle, 24, son of Mrs. Anna A. Rolle…Baltimore, Md.
A/1c Harold Malloy, 23, son of Mrs. A. Senft…Coshocton…and J. Malloy…Comers, O.
A/1c Veldon L. Wichster, 20, son of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Wichster, West Concord, Minn
A/3c Joseph L. Dobbs, 19, son of Mrs. And Mrs. Leonard Dobbs…Stanaford, W.Va.
A/2c Bennie C. Mabbitt, son of Coral Mabbitt…Sheldon, Ill.
A/2c Eldridge J. Larkins, 20, son of Mr. and Mrs. Lyle M. Ewen, Sheldon, Ill.
A/1c James C. Coomer, son of Mrs. Blanche Coomer…Belascoe, Ky.
S/Sgt. Robert P. Malady, 21, husband of Mrs. Barbara Malady…Newark, N.J.
A/1c William M. Smart, 23, son of Mr. and Mrs. William Smart…Pomona, Calif.
A/1c Troy Matlock, 22, son of Mr. and Mrs. Orlen J. Matlock…Mulgrow, Okla.
A/1c Eugene G. Granger, 23, son of Mr. and Mrs. George Granger…Baltimore, Md.
A/2c Paul G. Moore, 21, son of Mr. and Mrs. Percy E. Moore…Richmond Heights, Mo.
A/2c George E. Blair, 20, son of David C. Blair…Seattle, Wash.
A/2c William C. Michael, 21, son of Mr. and Mrs. William C. Michael…Oakfield, Tenn.

“The five members of the crew were:

Harvey W. Rogers, 41…Lafayette, chief pilot for Transocean Air Lines
Herman E. Hum, 41, of 42 Lake Forest Drive, Daly City, a Transocean captain;
Fred W. Patchett, 37, of 2999 Summit Drive, Burlingame, a co-pilot;
Velma Sandridge, 27, of 2209 East 19th Street, Oakland, stewardess; and
Mrs. F. E. Chapman, of El Paso, Tex., second stewardess.”

(Oakland Tribune, CA. “Partial List of Disaster Dead Released.” 3-21-1953, p. 2 and G5.)

Sources

AirDisaster.com. Accident Database. Accident Synopsis 03201953. Accessed at: http://www.airdisaster.com/cgi-bin/view_details.cgi?date=03201953&reg=N88942&airline=Transocean+Airlines

Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. Transocean Air Lines, 20 Mar 1953. Accessed 2-19-2009 at: http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19530320-1

Baugher, Joseph F. 1945 USAAF Serial Numbers. 9-21-2011 revision. Accessed 1-1-2012 at: http://www.joebaugher.com/usaf_serials/1945.html

Civil Aeronautics Board. Accident Investigation Report. Transocean Air Lines, Alvarado, California, March 20, 1953. Washington, DC: CAB, October 14, 1953, 11 pages. Accessed at: http://dotlibrary1.specialcollection.net/scripts/ws.dll?file&fn=8&name=*P%3A%5CDOT%5Cairplane%20accidents%5Cwebsearch%5C032053.pdf Also 5-20-2023 at:
file:///C:/Users/Wayne/Downloads/dot_33463_DS1.pdf

National Fire Protection Association. “Worst No. American Aircraft Fires – 1953.” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 47, No. 3, Jan 1954, pp. 309-313.

Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1950s.” Oct 23 2008 update. Accessed at: http://www.jaydeebee1.com/crash50s.html

Oakland Tribune, CA. “20 Plane Victims Named.” 3-21-1953, p. 2. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=43371568

Oakland Tribune, CA. “Partial List of Disaster Dead Released.” 3-21-1953, p. 2 and G5. At: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=43371568