1945 — Sep 15, USAAF C-47B takeoff crash (from Fairfax Field, Kansas City, KS), MO — 23
–23 Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description, USAAF C-47B, September 15, 1945
–23 Baugher. 1945 USAAF Serial Numbers. Sep 21, 2011 rev.
–23 Gero. Military Aviation Disasters: Significant Losses Since 1908. 1999, 36.
–23 Mireles 2006. Fatal Army AF Aviation Accidents…US…, V3, Aug 1944-Dec 1945, 1164.
–23 Planecrashinfo.com. Accident Details…September 15, 1945…Near Kansas, Missouri…
–22 Daily Mail, Hagerstown, MD. “22 Killed Today in Plane Crash.” 9-15-1945, 1.
Narrative Information
Aviation Safety Network: “After takeoff from Fairfax Field (KCK) runway 35, the C-47 barely climbed. Unable to gain height the airplane contacted trees and crashed on the north bank of the Missouri River.[1] The right engine was not developing enough power on takeoff, possibly because it had been fitted with plugs that were not recommended by the manufacturer.” (ASN, USAAF, Sep 15, 1945)
Baugher: “Douglas C-47B-45-DK Skytrain….1011 (c/n 17014/34277) crashed on takeoff near Kansas City, MO Sep 15, 1945. 23 of 24 onboard killed.” (Baugher. 1945 USAAF Serial Numbers. Sep 21, 2011 rev.)
Gero: “Flown by the Air Transport Command (ATC), the twin-engine aircraft crashed and burst into flames soon after its departure from Fairfax Field, located at Kansas City, Kansas. All but one passenger among the 24 American servicemen aboard were killed, including the crew of three, and the sole survivor was seriously injured. Bound for the US East Coast, the transport lifted off from Runway 35, but then failed to gain sufficient altitude. Initial contact was with trees located on the north bank of the Missouri River, which were about 30ft (10m) tall and approximately 1 mile (1.5km) beyond the end of the runway, with the impact shearing off both wings, and the C-47 then slammed to earth. The accident occurred in darkness and clear meteorological conditions, with a visibility of 10 miles (15km), and a slight breeze. Examination of the wreckage revealed one blade on the right propeller to be unbent, indicating a considerable reduction in power in the corresponding engine at the moment of impact. This suspected loss of power could have been related to one or a combination of the following factors: the aircraft’s power plants had been fitted with spark plugs whose use was not recommended by the manufacturer; a possible misuse of the heat control by the crew due to dissimilarity with earlier models of the C-47, or excessive dilution and blow-by caused by a sudden increase in oil consumption during a preceding flight.” (Gero 1999, 36-37.)
Mireles: “At 0008 CWT, a Douglas C-47B attempting a take-off crashed one mile north of Fairfax Field, Kansas City, Kansas, killing 23 passengers and crew. Passenger SSgt. O.D. Delong miraculously survived, receiving serious injuries. Pilot lLt. Warren E. Derrickson, co-pilot lLt. James E. Wryest and engineer Pfc. Elbert P. Keziah were killed in the crash.
“The airplane was taking off on a passenger flight to Lowry Field, Denver, Colorado. The airplane took off on Runway 35, becoming airborne about halfway down the runway. The airplane cleared a 20-foot dike that was located near the end of the runway but failed to gain any significant altitude after that. The airplane then collided with tall trees on the north bank of the Missouri River. The airplane passed through the tops of a stand of willow trees for 50 feet before the starboard wing collided with a thick oak tree. The impact severed the wing outboard of the starboard engine nacelle. The airplane continued through the treetops until the port wing collided with a large cottonwood tree, shearing off the wing. The fuselage and center wing section passed through the trees and smashed to the ground on the raised roadbed of a double railroad track. The airplane broke up and burst into flames, scattering flaming wreckage and dismembered bodies over a large area. The force of the impact with the railroad embankment caused the rails to shift four inches out of line.” (Mireles 2006, 1164.)
Newspaper
Sep 15: “Kansas City, Sept. 15 (AP). — Twenty-two persons, including 19 veterans of European battlefronts, were killed early today as a C-47 army transport plane crashed in flames 14 seconds after leaving Fairfax airport.
“Only three of the 24 military personnel aboard the plane were removed alive from the flaming wreckage and one of those, Sergt. Bernard C. Tucker, Etna, Calif., died at a Kansas City hospital. A European overseas veteran, he was being flown to Camp Beale, Calif., for discharge. A survivor said all three members of the crew perished. Others brought to the hospital were Sergt. Ora D. De Long, Barstow, Calif., and Cpl. Fred Ebert, Pasadena, Calif.
“The plane was bound from Newark, N. J., to the west coast and had stopped to refuel.
“Army officials at Fairfax airport withheld names of the passengers and immediately placed the wreckage under a military police guard.
“The plane had just crossed the Missouri river when it exploded and crashed, one witness said. “It looked like the entire sky lit up,” said William F. Maxwell, a tourist hotel operator, nearby. “But I only heard a small explosion.”
“Wreckage of the huge transport was scattered over a wide area but most of the fuselage fell on tracks of the Burlington railroad about five miles north of Kansas City’s business section.” (Daily Mail, Hagerstown, MD. “22 Killed Today in Plane Crash.” 9-15-1945, 1.)
Sources
Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. United States Army Air Force Douglas C-47B-45-DK, Sep 15, 1945. Accessed 12-25-2008 at: http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19450915-1
Baugher, Joseph F. 1945 USAAF Serial Numbers. 9-21-2011 revision. Accessed 1-1-2012 at: http://www.joebaugher.com/usaf_serials/1945.html
Daily Mail, Hagerstown, MD. “22 Killed Today in Plane Crash.” 9-15-1945, 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=92136326
Gero, David. Military Aviation Disasters: Significant Losses Since 1908. UK and Newbury Park, CA: Patrick Stephens Limited, an imprint of Hayes Publishing, 1999.
Mireles, Anthony J. Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945 (Volume 3: August 1944 – December 1945). Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Co., 2006.
Planecrashinfo.com (Richard Kebabjian). “Accident Details…September 15, 1945…Near Kansas, Missouri…” Accessed 2-18-2019 at: http://planecrashinfo.com/1945/1945-43.htm
[1] Fairfax field was on south side of the Missouri, in Kansas City, KS. The north side of the river is within MO.