ANA Skymaster Amana crash
 The Douglas DC-4 Skymaster Amana |
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| Accident summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | 26 June 1950 |
| Type | Flight into terrain |
| Site | 19 km north-west of York, Western Australia 31°46′S 116°37′E / 31.76°S 116.62°E |
| Passengers | 24 |
| Crew | 5 |
| Fatalities | 28 |
| Survivors | 1 (died 5 days later) |
| Aircraft type | Douglas DC-4 |
| Tail number | VH-ANA |
| Flight origin | Perth Airport |
| Destination | Adelaide Airport |
The ANA Skymaster Amana crash was an aircraft crash which occurred near Perth, Western Australia on 26 June 1950. At 9:50pm, a Douglas DC-4 Skymaster aircraft named Amana, operated by Australian National Airways, departed Guildford aerodrome (now Perth Airport) in Perth, Western Australia, heading for Adelaide. Soon after departure, the airport lost radio contact with the aircraft, which crashed at 10:12pm.[1][2][3]
A pilot flying the McDouall Stuart, another Skymaster aircraft operated by Trans Australia Airlines, spotted a fire in bushland between Chidlow and York, and reported the co-ordinates. Rescue workers located the Amana, which had crashed in dense scrub on Berry Brow Estate, 12 statute miles (19.3 km) north-west of York.[2] 28 people died instantly in the crash, including 23 passengers and five crew members. Two men who lived on the property were first on the scene of the widely scattered burning wreckage to discover an elderly man walking around dazed with burnt clothes. This 67 year old Adelaide businessman was the only person to survive the initial crash, but he died five days later in a Perth hospital.[4] Eighteen bodies were so badly burnt they were not recognisable.[5]
One of those killed, Stan Baker, an employee of Ampol Petroleum, had in 1931 been booked to fly to Melbourne on the aircraft Southern Cloud on a flight during which it disappeared, but cancelled and made the journey by train instead, thus "surviving" the Southern Cloud's disappearance.[6]
It is still unknown exactly what caused the Amana crash despite a number of investigations.[7] "Black box" flight recorders were not a feature of commercial aircraft in 1950. Speculative causes included water contamination of fuel[8][9] and incompetency by the ground crew. It is known that after departure the number four engine had been shut down by the flight crew and subsequently the remaining three engines had all failed for indeterminate periods.[10]
The crew then attempted to return to the airport but in the process, after clearing a ridge line, the aircraft struck a 10 metre-high tree and crashed into a downward slope. Eyewitnesses heard an explosion before the crash. Aircraft safety standards in Australia improved as a result of the investigation into this disaster.[11][12]
An Inquiry was made into the crash.[13] Mr Justice Simpson made 3 recommendations as a result of the Inquiry.[7]
The Amana had its first flight in 1946 and was the flagship of the fleet. It had set an Australian speed record for a commercial aircraft and established a world record for a Skymaster aircraft when it flew from Perth to Melbourne in 6 hours 16 mins at an average speed of 460 km/h.[14]
There is a memorial to the victims of the crash at the entrance to the Beverley Aeronautical Museum, with flowers laid in their memory on the anniversary of this incident. A memorial church service was held at St George's Cathedral for the victims who included two Anglican ministers.[15]
The Skymaster crash was, at the time, Australia's worst civilian aircraft crash. Later, in 1960 Trans Australia Airlines Flight 538, a Fokker F27, crashed into the sea off Mackay, Queensland with the loss of all 29 people on board. The crash of the ANA Skymaster Amana remains the second worst commercial/civilian air disaster in Australian history and the worst in Western Australia's history.[16][17]
[edit] Gallery
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VH-ANA: Amana
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The wreckage burned for several hours
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Part of the plane's fuselage
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The debris field
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Western Australian police examining the still-burning wreckage
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One of the plane's engines
[edit] References
- ^ The West Australian - 27 June 1950 Retrieved 2011-09-15
- ^ a b c The West Australian - 28 June 1950 Retrieved 2011-09-15
- ^ VH-ANA Retrieved 2011-08-04
- ^ The West Australian - 3 July 1950, p.2 Retrieved 2011-10-13
- ^ "Historical Encyclopedia of WA". University of WA. 6 June 2005. http://www.encyclopedia.uwapress.uwa.edu.au/write_a_history_promotion. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
- ^ "Show Me A Mountain", P.151 - Angus & Robertson, 1961
- ^ a b The West Australian - 29 June 1951, p.3 Retrieved 2011-10-13
- ^ Canberra Times - 7 February 1951, p.4 Retrieved 2011-09-17
- ^ The Advocate - 7 February 1951 Retrieved 2011-09-16
- ^ The Advocate - 6 June 1951, p.7 Retrieved 2011-09-17
- ^ "Skymaster Accident Summary". Flight Safety Foundation. 21 February 2005. http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19500626-0&lang=en. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
- ^ "Tourism Report". Murdoch University. http://tourism.murdoch.edu.au/reports/BeverleyReport.pdf. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
- ^ The West Australian - 20 February 1951 p.3 Retrieved 2011-09-17
- ^ "Monthly Circulars". Department of Civil Aviation. 8 June 2005. http://www.airwaysmuseum.com/DCA%20Monthly%20Circulars%2046.htm. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
- ^ St. George's Cathedral (Perth, W.A.) Air Disaster at York, W.A. Order of service for those who lost their lives in the crash of the ANA DC4 Amana.
- ^ Ten Worst Aircraft Crashes in Australia Retrieved 2011-08-04
- ^ "Accident Database". Air Disasters.com. 17 September 2008. http://www.airdisaster.com/cgi-bin/search_keyword.cgi?search=Australia. Retrieved 2011-09-15.
[edit] See also
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