Status:	Final
Date:	Thursday 19 December 1946
Time:	18:07
Type:	Douglas C-54B-5-DO (DC-4)
Operator:	Eastern Air Lines
Registration:	NC88813
C/n / msn:	18344
First flight:	1944
Total airframe hrs:	4174
Crew:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 4
Passengers:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 56
Total:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 60
Aircraft damage:	Substantial
Aircraft fate:	Repaired
Location:	near Aberdeen, MD (   United States of America)
Phase:	En route (ENR)
Nature:	Domestic Scheduled Passenger
Departure airport:	Newark International Airport, NJ (EWR/KEWR), United States of America
Destination airport:	Miami (unknown airport), FL, United States of America
Flightnumber:	EA605

Narrative:
Universal Flight 7, a Douglas DC-3, departed Newark at 17:07 on an instrument flight clearance, via Airway Amber 7, over Washington to Raleigh, at 2,000 feet. Fifteen minutes later, Eastern Flight 605, a Douglas DC-4, departed Newark on a contact clearance at 2,000 feet, via Airway Amber 7, over Washington to Miami, non-stop. The DC-4 overtook the DC-3 in the vicinity of Aberdeen, Maryland. The co-pilot of the Eastern DC-4 suddenly saw the lights of an aircraft close to and to the left of the DC-4 and immediately rolled the DC-4 into a bank to the right and pulled the nose up forcefully. The rear of the plane collided with the forward top portion of the DC-3's fuselage. The DC-3 pilots, thinking they had collided with a bird, carried out a safe landing at Phillips Army Air Field while the DC-4 diverted to Washington-National Airport.

PROBABLE CAUSE: "The Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the lack of vigilance on the part of the pilots of both aircraft."

Mid air collision
Normal landing

» CAB File No. 5019-46