1954 — March 19, USAF C-119 fire after takeoff and crash, near Lothian, MD –all 18

— 18 Aviation Safety Network. United States Air Force Fairchild crash near Lothian 3-19-1954.
— 18 Daily Ardmoreite, OK. “Six Local Airmen Killed in Crash near East Coast.” 3-21-1954, 1.
— 18 Frederick Post, MD. “18 Lose Lives in Plane Crash near Annapolis.” 3-22-1954, p. 3.
— 18 Gero. Military Aviation Disasters: Significant Losses Since 1908. 1999, 60.
— 18 NFPA. “Large Loss Fires of 1954.” Quarterly of the NFPA, Vol. 48, No. 3, Jan 1955, 302.
— 18 Simmons, G. Ardmore Army Air Field/Ardmore Air Force Base Memorial website.
— 18 The News, Frederick, MD. “18 Aboard Plane Killed in Crash Near Annapolis.” 3-20-54, 1.

Narrative Information

Aviation Safety Network: Departed Washington-Bolling Air Force Base, Washington, DC for Hempstead Plains-Mitchell Field, NY, March 19, 1954.

“Registration: 51-7993; C/n /msn: 10732.
“Location: near Lothian, MD…
“Crashed while attempting night VFR in instrument conditions.” (ASN, USAF, 19 Mar 1954.)

Gero: “All 18 American servicemen aboard (12 passengers and a crew of six) were killed in the crash of the twin-engine transport, which took place 15 miles (25km) west of Andrews Air Force Base, and just east of the Potomac River. The aircraft, on a domestic US flight from Oklahoma to Mitchell Field, on Long Island, New York, slammed to earth and burned about 20 minutes after its departure from Bolling Air Force Base, near Washington, DC, which was an intermediate stop. Prior to the crash it had been circling over a radio beacon under visual flight rules (VFR) procedures, awaiting an IFR clearance before proceeding on towards its destina¬tion. Factors apparently contributing to the accident were: a) an attempt to maintain VFR flight at night and in rain (although the exact weather conditions at the time and scene of the crash were not known), and b) possible crew fatigue.” (Gero 1999, p. 60.)

National Fire Protection Association: “Mar. 19, near Annapolis, Md. U.S. Air Force, C-119, $250,000, 18 killed.

“Twelve passengers and a crew of six per¬ished when a C-119 crashed in flames in a forest near Annapolis. Volunteer firemen arriving at the scene found 15 bodies within a 10-acre area over which the wreckage was scattered. Intense flames prevented reaching the main portion of the fuselage where the other three occupants were trapped. Fire which spread to surrounding timber and brush was quickly brought under control.” (National Fire Protection Association. “Large Loss Fires of 1954.” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 48, No. 3, Jan 1955, pp. 201-326 (p. 302).)

Simmons: “Mar. 19, 1954…Fairchild C-119F (51-7993)…[Fatalities]

Captain gene T. Coppedge, 32, pilot …Pittsburg, Kansas
Lt. Roy C. Kemmerling, 26, co-pilot …Pine Grove, Pennsylvania
Lt. Henry T. Johnson, 33 …S. Portland, Maine
Lt. Richard L. Roloff, 24, navigator …Iselin, New Jersey
S/Sgt. Ernest V. Crabtree, 31 …Hawthorne, California
A/2C Jon G. Taylor, 18, radio operator …Adrian, Michigan

“Passengers…Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines

Pfc. Frederic R. Junghans, Detachment 3, 440th ASU…Ft. Benning, Georgia
A/B Wayne R. Snodgrass, 42nd AP Squadron …Limestone AFB, Maine
3C Gerald A Baldassaro, Jr. Drum and Bugle Corps …Bolling AFB, Washington, DC
A/2C Paul H. Springer, Drum and Bugle Corps …Bolling AFB, Washington, DC
A/2C Robert M. Strauss, Drum and Bugle Corps …Bolling AFB, Washington, DC
A/3C Joseph A. Valente, Drum and Bugle Corps …Bolling AFB, Washington, DC
Phillip A Lavers, USN, ‘USS Sagamore’ (ATA-208) …Norfolk, Virginia
Roy G. Lambertson, USN, ‘USS Sagamore’ (ATA-208) …Norfolk, Virginia
Sgt. Raymond L. Hahn, Marine Corps …MGNB, Norfolk, Virginia
YNSN John S. Hubbard, USN, Flt. A/C Service Squadron 102..NAS, Norfolk, Virginia
SN Allen R. Hillar, USN, Flt. A/C Service Squadron 102 …NAS Norfolk, Virginia
AN James D. Robbins, USN, ‘USS Briareus’ (AR-12) …Norfolk, Virginia.

(Simmons, G. Ardmore Army Air Field/Ardmore Air Force Base Memorial website. Accessed 6-12-2013.)
Newspapers:

March 20: “Annapolis, Md. (AP) — Eighteen occupants of a twin-engine C-119 died late last night when the big Air Force plane burst into flames a few minutes after taking off and crashed into a rain-swept cornfield. The plane plunged to earth on a farm 19 miles south of Annapolis. Twisted pieces of wreckage and bodies v/ere scattered over a 10-acre area. There were no survivors.

“A heavy rain aided firemen in preventing the fire from getting out of hand. The plane grazed the
edge of a wooded area just off Maryland Route 2 as it descended.

“Witnesses reported the plane was on fire before the fatal plunge. It exploded at or shortly before the crash.

“A spokesman at Bolling Air Force Base, from which the C-119 had left minutes earlier, said 12 passengers and six crewmen were aboard when the ship took off at 10:12 p. m. A watch found at the scene had stopped at 10:29. The Boiling Public Information Office indicated it would be late
today before identities of the victims were made known. First there was the grim task of identifying their bodies. Then relatives had to be notified.

“An official said the plane, belonging to the 774th Troop Carrier Squadron based at Ardmore, Okla., had stopped at Boiling to refuel on a routine flight from Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., to Mitchel Field, N. Y.

Virtually all the victims appeared to have been U.S. military personnel. Pieces of sailors’ uniforms were found on the fringes of the crash scene. There was also a sleeve bearing the chevrons of a Marine corporal.

“A detachment of sailors and Marines from the U. S. Naval Academy at Annapolis stood guard over the area as a group of investigators from Andrews Air Force Base, Md., examined the wreckage for clues to the cause of the tragedy.

“For a radius of 500 yards pieces of the plane, bodies and parts of bodies lay under the harsh glare of ambulance and fire truck searchlights. Red-and-white striped parachutes had been spread over some of the victims.

“Mrs. Robert Estep, who lives about a mile from where the plane crashed, said she saw it burning in the air as it roared over her house. Mrs. Alice R. Ridgely, another resident, said it made “a terrible grinding sound — like a heavy truck in low gear.” Seconds later she heard it crash and saw the surrounding area light up. “The whole house seemed afire,” she said.

“Flames spread from the wreckage to surrounding brush and timber, but a heavy rain at the time
and quick arrival of firemen from half a dozen southern Maryland communities prevented it from
getting out of hand….

“The C119 crash came at almost the same time another Air Force plane, a B26 from Vance Air Force Base. Okla., crashed into a swampy area to the south, near Amelia. Va. Four persons perished in that mishap.” (The News, Frederick, MD. “18 Aboard Plane Killed in Crash Near Annapolis.” 3-20-1954, p. 1.)

March 21: “Six airmen and officers from Ardmore Air Force Base were among 18 military personnel killed Friday night in the crash of their C-119 Flying Boxcar near Annapolis, Md. The plane, from the local base, crashed about 17 minutes after take-off from Bolling Air Force Base, Washington, D.C., en route to Mitchell Air Force Base, Hempstead, Long Island. The crash occurred about 10:20 p.m. (EST) 19 miles south of Annapolis.

“Air Force investigators search through wreckage and human remains scattered over Maryland farmland Saturday for the cause of the crash. There was no immediate word from the investigating party and their headquarters at Andrews Air Force Base near Washington said no findings would be made known for at least several days….

“This is the first fatal accident involving personnel of the 463rd Troop Carrier Wing since its arrival here last August and the first involving men of the 774th Squadron in nearly three years of operation.

“Sgt. Crabtree [crew member] is…survived by three children, Stephen, 6, Lawrence, 11, and Sandra, 4. Mrs. Crabtree is expecting a fourth child in April….

“The plane had left Ardmore Friday morning for Maxwell AFB Montgomery, Ala., where a load
of passengers were picked up for Mitchell AFB in Washington. Shortly after arriving at Washington, the aircraft departed for Mitchell AFB with 12 passengers.

“Horrified farm families, startled by a noise one witness said was like a monster truck in low gear, saw the big twin engine C-119 careen in flames over their heads last night. It grazed the edge of a wooded area 19 miles south of Annapolis, crashed and exploded, scattering wreckage, bodies and parts of bodies over portions of two farms….” (Daily Ardmoreite, OK. “Six Local Airmen Killed in Crash near East Coast.” 3-21-1954, p. 1.)

March 22: “Annapolis, Md. (AP) – Eighteen occupants of a twin-engine C-119 died late Friday night when the big Air Force plane burst into flames a few minutes after taking off and crashed into a rain-swept cornfield…. The plane grazed the edge of a wooded area just off Maryland Route 2 as it descended.

“Witnesses reported the plane was on fire before the fatal plunge. It exploded at or shortly before the crash.” (Frederick Post, MD. “18 Lose Lives in Plane Crash near Annapolis.” 3-22-1954, 3.)

Sources

Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. United States Air Force, Fairchild…Flying Boxcar, 19 Mar 1954. Accessed 2-22-2009 at:
http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19540319-1

Daily Ardmoreite, Ardmore, OK. “Six Local Airmen Killed in Crash near East Coast.” 3-21-1954, p. 1. At: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=207040896&sterm=plane

Frederick Post, MD. “18 Lose Lives in Plane Crash near Annapolis.” 3-22-1954, p. 3. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=1805198&sterm=plane+crash

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

National Fire Protection Association. “Large Loss Fires of 1954.” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 48, No. 3, Jan 1955, pp. 201-326.

Simmons, G. Ardmore Army Air Field/Ardmore Air Force Base Memorial website. Accessed 6-12-2013 at: http://www.brightok.net/~gsimmons/memorial2.htm

The News, Frederick, MD. “18 Aboard Plane Killed in Crash Near Annapolis.” 3-20-1954, p. 1. At: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=32606305&sterm=plane+crash+md