Canadian Pacific Air Lines flight Jan.

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Canadian Pacific Air Lines flight Jan.
CF-CUS DC-6B Canadian Pacific Al 2 YYF 22JAN67 (5574944477) .jpg

An identical aircraft from the airline
Accident summary
Accident type Bomb attack
place 20 miles west of 100 Mile House , CanadaCanadaCanada 
date July 8, 1965
Fatalities 52
Survivors 0
Aircraft
Aircraft type Douglas DC-6 B, United StatesUnited StatesUnited States 
operator Canadian Pacific Air Lines , CanadaCanadaCanada 
Mark CF-CUQ, CanadaCanadaCanada 
Surname Empress of City of Buenos Aires
Departure airport Vancouver International Airport , CanadaCanadaCanada 
1. Stopover Prince George Airport , CanadaCanadaCanada 
2. Stopover Fort St. John Airport , CanadaCanadaCanada 
3. Stopover Fort Nelson Airport , CanadaCanadaCanada 
4. Stopover Watson Lake Airport , CanadaCanadaCanada 
Destination airport Whitehorse Airport , CanadaCanadaCanada 
Passengers 46
crew 6th
Lists of aviation accidents

On July 8, 1965, a crashed Douglas DC-6 of the Canadian Pacific Air Lines on the Canadian Pacific Air Lines Flight 21 from Vancouver through Prince George , Fort St. John , Fort Nelson and Watson Lake to Whitehorse , with all 52 Inmates died.

Plane and crew

The plane was a 12-year-old Douglas DC-6B with the aircraft marks CF QUQ, the four radial engines of the type Pratt & Whitney R-2800 was equipped.

The crew consisted of Captain John Alfred Steele (41) with 13,218 hours of flight experience, 2,690 of them on the DC-6, First Officer Warner Murray Wells (29) with 2,657 hours of flight experience, 982 of which on the DC-6, and the flight engineer Stanley E. Clarke (26) with 3,430 hours of flight experience, 230 of which on the DC-6. They had passed the last health check on March 11, 1965, April 2, 1965, and July 16, 1964, respectively.

In addition, flight attendants Ernest Wenzel Soural and the two flight attendants Sue Heinrich and Marlene Brauer were on board. They were also fit for duty at the time of the accident.

course

All times are PST specified

The DC-6 took off at 14:42 under instrument flight rules with almost maximum take-off weight in Vancouver. The flight to Prince George was to be via the Victor 300 and Blue 22 airways . At 3:17 p.m., the pilots north of Hope requested clearance for the onward flight to Williams Lake , which they also received. At 3:29 p.m., the pilots reported to the Vancouver Air Traffic Control Center that they would fly over Ashcroft at an altitude of 16,000 ft (4875 m ) and that they would fly over Williams Lake at 3:48 p.m., which was confirmed by flight control. When flight control in Vancouver tried to establish radio contact with the pilots of the DC-6 at 3:38 p.m. , they received no answer. About two minutes later she received " Mayday " three times .

The main burned wreck of the DC-6 was found in a wooded area 20 miles west of 100 Mile House and 4.5 miles north of Gustafson Lake .

Accident investigation

The rubble stretched in a line 1.2 km from south to north. Smaller parts were carried by the wind up to 4.8 km from the accident site. The main wreck without the stern was found at the northern end of the field.

When questioned, nine eyewitnesses stated that the DC-6 was flying at normal altitude and in a horizontal position in clear weather. They said they heard an explosion, some a second explosion, and that smoke was coming from the DC-6 and detaching the stern, which fell to the ground. According to the statement, the DC-6 went in a steep left-hand spiral with the aircraft nose pointing downwards. The engines could all be heard as well.

Both landing gear and flaps were retracted on impact. The engines delivered little or no thrust , but no signs of failure of the engines or their propellers could be found. Further south, three large outwardly bent parts of the outer skin were found. At the southern end of the debris field was stern with tailplane including elevators and rudder including rudder . Since the surrounding trees showed hardly any damage, this indicated a vertical fall of the stern. No material defects in the individual elements or faults in the flight control were discovered.

Parts of the fuselage structure and the outer skin of the left side showed that an explosion had occurred shortly before the rear pressure bulkhead of the DC-6, which pressed the fuselage forward at the point. It was strong enough to break the double steel cladding of the rear heater.

The toilet area was found a little further west of the stern. While the right toilet was barely damaged, the left showed signs of an explosion, with parts of it being forced into other areas. Based on the damage pattern, it was concluded that the explosion was too strong to be caused by explosive decompression or materials on the aircraft. There was already a suspicion of a crime at the beginning of the investigation due to the explosion, so the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were called in, which found traces of explosives.

The investigators concluded that the DC-6, which had no defects and was airworthy, was flying at the assigned altitude and course. The stern was finally blown off by an explosion of an explosive device, whereupon the plane hit at 3:41 p.m.

Suspects

The criminal investigation focused on four passengers:

  • The 40-year-old Douglas Edgar

Shortly before take-off, he took out four life insurance policies at the airport with a total value of $ 125,000, which was equivalent to $ 1,000,000 in 2018. He registered his family as the beneficiary. The police learned from friends that he was gambling . However, there was no evidence that he was in financial difficulty or that he had any experience with explosives.

  • The 53-year-old Stefan Koleszar

He was on his way to a new assignment near Prince George, where he was to perform rock mining. He had experience and access to explosives and was described as spirited but cautious about his job. He was dishonorably discharged from the military for misconduct for which details are not available . He also suffered from an inferiority complex ; According to his doctor, he was discriminated against because of his Ukrainian origin, which resulted in fights. Despite X-rays , no pieces of metal were found in his body that could have been damaged in an explosion in the immediate vicinity.

  • 29 year old Peter Broughton

He was on his way to work on a mine near Cassiar to monitor the construction machinery in use. He has been described by friends as intelligent but socially isolated. He lived in Vancouver and took night classes to improve his education. His hobby was firearms and he had been an armorer at the shooting club in Cassiar; also, according to his sister, he was interested in aviation and electronics. He was considered the most suspect; although never proven, it was suspected that he was homosexual , which was then a criminal offense in Canada.

  • 35-year-old Paul Vander Meulen

He moved to Richmond about three weeks before the Bellingham crash in the United States . X-rays found in his body fragments of copper that are used for detonators . Like Edgar, he took out a large life insurance policy about two months before the crash; he was worth $ 100,000. He had a .44 Magnum on board, which he had registered with the police, although it remained unclear whether he was carrying it with him at the time of the crash or had stowed it in his luggage. He was paid an insurance premium of $ 800 due to a head injury sustained while working on a boat . When questioned by the police, he stated that he had taken out life insurance to insure his family should something happen to him. The examination revealed that a psychiatrist diagnosed him with chronic anxiety disorder; he described him as very intelligent, but capable of violent, illogical acts.

Ultimately, the perpetrator could not be identified.

Commemoration

On March 11, 2013, almost 50 years after the attack, a Facebook page was set up in memory of the victims. A memorial stone with the names of the dead was also placed in 100 Mile House.

swell

Web links

Coordinates: 51 ° 22 '12 "  N , 121 ° 27' 36"  W.