ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 59008
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| Date: | Monday 14 June 1943 |
| Time: | 06:00 |
| Type: |  Boeing RB-17C Flying Fortress |
| Owner/operator: | 46th TCSqn /317th TCGp USAAF |
| Registration: | 40-2072 |
| MSN: | 2073 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 40 / Occupants: 41 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Bakers Creek, 5 miles S of Mackay, QLD -
 Australia
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Passenger |
| Departure airport: | RAAF Mackay |
| RAAF Port Moresby |
The B17C Flying Fortress bomber, 40-2012, had been converted to a passenger carrying aircraft after being damaged in a bombing raid in the Philippines on December 25th, 1941.
In June 1943 it was being operated by the 46th Troop Carrier Squadron, 317th Troop Carrier Group of the US Fifth Air Force.
Early in the morning of 14/6/43 it took off from Mackay in Queensland, for Port Moresby in New Guinea with a crew of six and carrying 35 passengers, the latter all US Army personnel returning to their units after leave in Australia.
Only minutes after getting airborne in foggy dawn flying conditions the RB-17C crashed about 5 miles from the airport.
Only one man, a passenger, survived.
The crash was the worst air accident in the SW Pacific area in WW2, and remains the worst aviation accident in Australia.
Sources:
Wikipedia
https://www.themorningbulletin.com.au/news/six-deadly-military-aircraft-crashes-in-qld-histor/3209664/
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 22-Mar-2009 01:22 | angels one five | Added |
| 26-Aug-2011 17:40 | Uli Elch | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 08-Sep-2011 05:41 | angels one five | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Source] |
| 16-Feb-2012 03:56 | Nepa | Updated [Time, Operator, Narrative] |
| 12-Sep-2013 02:31 | angels one five | Updated [Time, Operator, Location, Source, Narrative] |
| 06-Jun-2015 16:46 | Angel dick one | Updated [Time, Operator, Departure airport, Destination airport] |
| 06-Dec-2016 22:53 | angels one five | Updated [Narrative] |
| 07-Aug-2017 07:05 | gerard57 | Updated [Source] |
| 31-Mar-2020 17:41 | Reno Raines | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
| 09-Jun-2022 22:17 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location] |
| 09-Jun-2022 23:33 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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