Plane crash on July 27, 1934 near Tuttlingen
| Plane crash on July 27, 1934 near Tuttlingen | |
|---|---|
 A Curtiss T-32 Condor II |
|
| Accident summary | |
| Accident type | Structural failure |
| place | Tuttlingen |
| date | July 27, 1934 |
| Fatalities | 12 |
| Survivors | 0 |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Curtiss AT-32C |
| operator | Swissair |
| Mark | HB-LAP |
| Departure airport | Zurich-Dübendorf airport |
| 1. Stopover | Stuttgart-Boeblingen Airport |
| 2. Stopover | Halle / Leipzig airport |
| Destination airport | Berlin-Tempelhof Airport |
| Passengers | 9 |
| crew | 3 |
| Lists of aviation accidents | |
When plane crash on July 27, 1934 in Tuttlingen a Curtiss AT-32C crashed Condor II of Swissair from where all twelve occupants were killed. It was the first fatal flight accident for Swissair and also one of the first passenger plane crashes in Europe (see list of flight accidents up to 1949 ).
Plane and crew
The Curtiss AT-32C Condor II (serial number 53) with the aircraft registration HB-LAP and the identification number CH-170 was a special production for Swissair . The aircraft was powered by two supercharged Wright Cyclone SCR-1820-F3 engines with 720 hp each. The engines had a variable propeller blade adjustment . The cabin had a soundproof cladding and was equipped with adjustable air nozzles to supply the passengers with fresh air. The main landing gear was retractable electrically and hydraulically. The engines had an aerodynamically NACA profiled hood fairing. For reinforcement, they were each connected to the upper fuselage with a two-legged steel motor fork.
The aircraft could carry 15 passengers and was handed over to Swissair on March 28, 1934 . The aircraft crew consisted of the pilot Armin Mühlematter, the on-board mechanic and radio operator Hans Daschinger and the flight attendant Nelly Hedwig Diener , also known as the angel of the air .
Course of the accident
The plane took off from Zurich with destination Berlin , with stopovers in Böblingen at the Stuttgart-Böblingen airport and Halle / Leipzig . According to the last altitude information in the logbook, the Curtiss was flying at an altitude of approx. 2000 meters based on sea level (MSL) when the right engine and the right lower wing broke off with a loud bang around 9:50 a.m. and the aircraft fell into a steep dive a forest on the Russberg fell about four kilometers north of Tuttlingen (on the district of the municipality of Wurmlingen ). None of the 12 people on board survived. There was no major fire and the cell could be raised or turned to rescue the dead.
The right engine and parts of the right outer wing were found approx. 50 m from the fuselage. The right upper wing and some tensioning wires had also detached from the aircraft and were about 800 m from the fuselage in the forest.
examination
When examining the debris, it was found that the wing breakage was due to fractures in the engine mount and wing structure. The representatives of the Federal Aviation Office therefore suspected an independent expansion of the engine, as has happened on several occasions with more powerful engines. The German investigative commission made up of representatives from the Stuttgart Aviation Office and the German Aviation Research Institute (DVL) in Berlin-Adlershof concluded that the first fractures were caused by inadequate welding of the connection tabs (anchor points of the wire bracing) and the vibrations of the engine. Half of such a connection tab showed fatigue fracture as a result of material fatigue . However, this thesis is controversial. A more detailed accident investigation on the machine was not carried out. There is a memorial stone at the crash site.
Web links
- Entry on the crash in the Aviation Safety Network
- Crash details on planecrashinfo.com
- Bryan R. Swopes: July 27, 1934 , thisdayinaviation.com
- Crash of a Curtiss AT-32C Condor in Tuttlingen: 12 killed , baaa-acro.com
- Böblinger airport stories, flughafenbb.com
Individual evidence
- ^ Sarah Still: Plane crash near Wurmlingen on July 27, 1934 . In: Willi Riedlinger, District Construction Officer and Dr. Hans-Joachim Schuster, Tuttlingen District Archive (ed.): Contributions to the history of fire extinguishing and the fire brigade in the Tuttlingen district . "God to honor, neighbor to defend". History Association for the Tuttlingen District, Tuttlingen 2006.
- ↑ Daily newspaper: About the plane accident 30 years ago. One who was there describes the details of the recovery. Ed .: Schwäbische Zeitung. The courier. Tuttlingen August 1st, 1964.
- ↑ Daily newspaper: The plane disaster near Tuttlingen . Ed .: Neue Zürcher Zeitung. Sheet C2. Zurich July 29, 1934.
- ↑ Daily newspaper: The plane disaster near Tuttlingen . Ed .: Neue Zürcher Zeitung. Baltt F2. Zurich July 30, 1934.
- ^ Richard people: plane crash near Tuttlingen 60 years ago . In: Tuttlinger Heimatblätter . Yearbook 1993, new series 56, page 71. Tuttlingen.
- ^ Daily newspaper letter from Dr. FH: About the plane crash in Tuttlingen . Ed .: Neue Zürcher Zeitung. Sheet A2-1 and A2-2. Zurich August 16, 1934.
Coordinates: 48 ° 1 ′ 7.8 " N , 8 ° 47 ′ 48.1" E