Narrative:A SNCAC (Farman) NC.223.4 mail plane, named La Verrier, crashed into the Mediterranean Sea while on a mail flight from Marseille, France, to Bizerte, Beirut and Damascus.
On board was the newly-appointed Vichy High Commissioner to Lebanon and Syria, M. Jean Chiappe.
The airplane likely strayed into the battle zone of the Battle of Cape Spartivento. That day British and Italian naval ships were involved in a battle. The crew reportedly radioed that they were hit by machine-gun fire.
Sources:
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Aviators from WWII - Lieutenant Mark Fownes Somerville»
Henri Guillaumet
Photos
Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does
not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Marseille-Marignane Airport to Bizerte Airfield as the crow flies is 784 km (490 miles).
Accident location: Global; accuracy within tens or hundreds of kilometers.
This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.