1942 — Aug 15, USAAFC-53 flies into terrain, foggy night near Garnet Peak, Peru, MA–16
Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 6-7-2024 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/
–16 Berkshire Evening Eagle, MA. “13 Paratroopers, 3 Fliers Killed in Peru.” 8-17-1942, p. 1.
–16 LeBoeuf. “Peru residents remember paratroopers lost in 1942 plane crash on Garnet Peak.”
–16 Mireles. Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in…US, 1941-1945 (V. 1), 2006, p. 129.
Narrative Information
Mireles: “21:32, a Douglas C-53 flying in poor weather collided with terrain near Garnet Peak at Peru, Massachusetts, killing 16 paratroopers and crew and seriously injuring three others.
“The aircraft was part of an eleven-airplane flight from Pope Field, North Carolina, to Hyannis, Massachusetts, with a refueling stop at Mitchel Field, New York. Weather at Mitchel was so poor that the flight leader contemplated spending the night. Orders came down from headquarters to take off. The clearance at Hyannis was cancelled because conditions were below minimums, so the flight was diverted to and cleared to Providence, Rhode Island. Once airborne, the formation could not stay together in the rapidly deteriorating conditions at the assigned altitude of 3,000 feet and was ordered to climb above the weather. The accident airplane flew on top of the weather with the formation before the clouds became increasingly thicker and the flight leader signaled for a slow instrument let down through the weather. The accident pilot’s instrument card had been revoked after his last instrument check ride (7-26-42) and he was operating without a rated co-pilot and radio operator.
“The pilot began his let-down at about 300 feet per minute and flew the airplane into the ground under control with wings level and both engines functioning. The aircraft collided with large trees on a level ridge at an elevation of 2,005 above sea level, breaking apart and catching fire. The aircraft snapped off large trees in its path and came to rest 350 feet from the initial point of impact, scattering wreckage and dismembered bodies for many yards. Paratrooper Sgt. Robert Lee, Columbus, Ohio (the only passenger properly strapped in), miraculously escaped serious injury in the initial crash but was seriously burned while saving the lives of fellow paratroopers…. Sgt. Lee fired his pistol into the air to attract attention but no one noticed. Sgt. Lee then walked three miles to the state highway and notified State Police of the crash, guiding them back on foot to the crash site. The woods and underbrush were so dense that a trail had to be hacked through to allow rescue workers access to the wreck site.
“Weather at the scene of the crash was reported as solid overcast beginning at 2,500 feet with scattered clouds and occasional fog from 2,500 feet to ground level….” (Mireles 2006, pp. 129-130.)
Newspaper
Aug 17, Berkshire Evening Eagle, MA: “Thirteen U.S. Army paratroopers, highly trained, and three aviators, flying a new Army transport ship, died Saturday night on lofty Garnet Peak of Peru State Forest succumbing to another freak of nature – the air corps’ dreaded ‘soupy’ fog.
“Only one of the three survivors, fighting for their lives in the House of Mercy and St. Luke’s Hospitals, is given a fair chance to live. The others are on the critical list.
“….Hero of the disaster, one of the worst accidents in military aviation, was Sgt. Robert Lee of Columbus, Ohio, who with his clothes completely burned from his body, climbed from the wrecked plane and succeeded in dragging two of his fellow passengers to safety. The St. Luke’s patient carried two others from the burning plane only to find they were dead. The two other survivors, Pvt. James Fern of Abingdon, Va., and Alonzo Pearson of Windbert, Pa., are at the House of Mercy, Pvt. Fern showed the most improvement today.
“The crash happened at 8:45, according to Mrs. Matty Bishop, a plane observer who lives nearest the accident. Her two sons, Robert and Kenneth Torrey, assembled a party of townspeople, including David Corcoran and his 15-year-old nephew, James Carpenter of Lee, and went out in the general direction of the crash. Starting up toward Garnet Peak, they heard a shot and Kenneth Torrey’s shotgun answered back. Another exchange of volleys led the party to the scene of the crash where they found Sgt. Robert Lee waling from one body to another to ascertain the living among his buddies. They immediately removed Sgt. Lee to Dr. S. M. Lent’s office in Hinsdale and after being bundled in blankets and treated he was removed to St. Luke’s. In the meantime, Mrs. Bishop had notified the Peru report center and First Corps Area in Boston was informed.
“The huge two-motored plane en route to Providence, R. I., and Camp Edwards, on a tactical mission from Pope Field at Fort Bragg, N.C. brushed the tree tops of the 2200-foot Peru mountain, then plunged down into the wooded land, coming to a stop on the flats. There was such an impact that the plane cleared a 60-foot trail through the thick of the forests for a distance of 60 yards, uprooting and cutting large trees in its path. Woodsmen from surrounding towns had to partially clear the way to the scene….” (Berkshire Evening Eagle, MA. “13 Paratroopers, 3 Fliers Killed in Peru.” 8-17-1942, p. 1.)
Sources
Berkshire Evening Eagle, MA. “13 Paratroopers, 3 Fliers Killed in Peru.” 8-17-1942, p. 1. Accessed 6-7-2024 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/the-berkshire-evening-eagle-aug-17-1942-p-1/
LeBoeuf, Patricia. “Peru residents remember paratroopers lost in 1942 plane crash on Garnet Peak.” Townofperuma.com. Accessed 6-7-2024 at:
https://www.townofperuma.com/about-us/slideshows/garnett-mountain-peak
Mireles, Anthony J. Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945 (Volume 1: Introduction, January 1941 – June 1943). Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Co., 2006.