Narrative:
A Douglas DC-4 operated by Maritime Central Airways crashed after the flight crew lost of control of the aircraft in turbulence. The aircraft was destroyed and all 79 on board were killed.
The flight departed London, U.K. at 21:48 hours GMT (August 10) for a flight to Toronto, Canada with refueling stops at Keflavik, Iceland and Goose Bay, Canada. The aircraft departed Keflavik at 05:12 GMT (August 11) following a 66-minute stop.
At 13:20 GMT the aircraft, following receipt of the Montreal weather forecast, advised Goose Bay that it would overfly Goose Bay and proceed to Montreal. Approaching Goose Bay a request for a clearance to cruise at 4000 ft to Lake Eon and at 6000 ft to Montreal was denied, following which the pilot chose to proceed VFR on Airway Red 1 until a clearance was issued at 16:07 GMT for an IFR flight at 6000 ft.
The aircraft reached Quebec at 18:07 and then estimated arrival at Montreal at 19:02 GMT. Last radio contact was at 18:10 when Quebec Radio Range Station relayed a message to the aircraft requesting it to contact Montreal Range approaching Rougemont for clearance. The aircraft was flying at about 6000 feet when it entered an active cumulonimbus cloud, including heavy rain and strong gusty winds.
In these conditions the aircraft entered an uncontrolled descent until it struck the ground in an almost vertical (70 degrees nose down, slightly left wing down) attitude at a speed over 200 kts.
PROBABLE CAUSE: "Severe turbulence encountered whilst flying in a cumulonimbus cloud, resulting in a chain of events quickly leading up to a complete loss of control and causing the aircraft to dive to the ground in a near vertical nose-down attitude."
Loss of control
accident date: 11-08-1957
type: Douglas DC-4
registration: CF-MCF
| Status: | Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
| Date: | Sunday 11 August 1957 |
| Time: | 18:15 UTC |
| Type: |  Douglas DC-4 |
| Operator: | Maritime Central Airways |
| Registration: | CF-MCF |
| MSN: | 18374 |
| First flight: | 1944 |
| Crew: | Fatalities: 6 / Occupants: 6 |
| Passengers: | Fatalities: 73 / Occupants: 73 |
| Total: | Fatalities: 79 / Occupants: 79 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Aircraft fate: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
| Location: | 7,2 km (4.5 mls) W of Issoudun, QC ( Canada)
|
| Phase: | En route (ENR) |
| Nature: | Int'l Non Scheduled Passenger |
| Departure airport: | Keflavík International Airport (KEF/BIKF), Iceland |
| Goose Bay Airport, NL (YYR/CYYR), Canada | |
| Flightnumber: | 315 |
A Douglas DC-4 operated by Maritime Central Airways crashed after the flight crew lost of control of the aircraft in turbulence. The aircraft was destroyed and all 79 on board were killed.
The flight departed London, U.K. at 21:48 hours GMT (August 10) for a flight to Toronto, Canada with refueling stops at Keflavik, Iceland and Goose Bay, Canada. The aircraft departed Keflavik at 05:12 GMT (August 11) following a 66-minute stop.
At 13:20 GMT the aircraft, following receipt of the Montreal weather forecast, advised Goose Bay that it would overfly Goose Bay and proceed to Montreal. Approaching Goose Bay a request for a clearance to cruise at 4000 ft to Lake Eon and at 6000 ft to Montreal was denied, following which the pilot chose to proceed VFR on Airway Red 1 until a clearance was issued at 16:07 GMT for an IFR flight at 6000 ft.
The aircraft reached Quebec at 18:07 and then estimated arrival at Montreal at 19:02 GMT. Last radio contact was at 18:10 when Quebec Radio Range Station relayed a message to the aircraft requesting it to contact Montreal Range approaching Rougemont for clearance. The aircraft was flying at about 6000 feet when it entered an active cumulonimbus cloud, including heavy rain and strong gusty winds.
In these conditions the aircraft entered an uncontrolled descent until it struck the ground in an almost vertical (70 degrees nose down, slightly left wing down) attitude at a speed over 200 kts.
Probable Cause:
PROBABLE CAUSE: "Severe turbulence encountered whilst flying in a cumulonimbus cloud, resulting in a chain of events quickly leading up to a complete loss of control and causing the aircraft to dive to the ground in a near vertical nose-down attitude."
Classification:
TurbulenceLoss of control
Sources:
» ICAO Accident Digest, Circular 59-AN/54 (18-23)Follow-up / safety actions
As the pilots were on duty for nearly 20 hours, this affected their performance in an emergency situation. A Canadian standard was adopted for on-duty time limitations. issued 3 Safety Recommendations
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Photos
accident date: 11-08-1957
type: Douglas DC-4
registration: CF-MCF
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 Keflavík International Airport to Goose Bay Airport, NL as the crow flies is 2419 km (1512 miles).
Accident location: Approximate; accuracy within a few kilometers.
Distance from Keflavík International Airport to Goose Bay Airport, NL as the crow flies is 2419 km (1512 miles).
Accident location: Approximate; accuracy within a few 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.
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Douglas DC-4
- 1242 built
- 203rd loss
- 119th fatal accident
- The worst accident (at the time)
- 2nd worst accident (currently)
Canada- The worst accident (at the time)
- 5th worst accident (currently)
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