1959 Transair Douglas Dakota accident
Encyclopedia
The Transair Douglas Dakota accident was an aircraft accident that occurred on 19 August 1959, when a Douglas Dakota operated by British
airline Transair
on a non-scheduled flight between Barcelona Airport in Spain
to London-Gatwick Airport in the United Kingdom
crashed in Spain
. The aircraft, which was carrying 29 students home to England, had been chartered by the National Union of Students to conduct regular weekly flights from Gatwick to Barcelona. It was the first accident suffered by a Transair aircraft following the airline's formation in 1947.
G-AMZD, had arrived early on the day of the accident at Barcelona from Gatwick with a party of students on board, and was scheduled to return to London with another group of students who were returning home from a holiday in Majorca. The flight was conducted under visual flight rules
(VFR); however, 19 minutes after departure from Barcelona, the Dakota, while climbing to its cruising altitude, entered cloud and struck Turó de l'Home
, a mountain north east of Barcelona. At the time of the accident the aircraft was 10 nautical miles (18.5 km) off of its intended flight path. Locals reported that at the time of the crash it was misty in the area.
An official at a nearby water station raised the alarm upon observing the crash; upon arrival, the Spanish Civil Guard
found the wreckage of the aircraft had been burnt out by a post-impact fire; All 29 passengers and three crew were killed.
personnel were responsible for the crash through their actions in any way; in addition, there was no evidence found that any defects in aids to navigation contributed to the accident. Accordingly, the British Air Ministry
, also investigating the crash, resolved to close the case without allocating responsibility. It was concluded that the pilot should not have entered cloud without advising air traffic control that he required an instrument flight clearance; it was presumed that the pilot was unaware that Turó de l'Home, 1712 metres (5,616.8 ft) in height, was in the path of the aircraft at the time the Dakota entered the clouds.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
airline Transair
Transair (UK)
Transair Limited was an early post-World War II private, independentindependent from government-owned corporations British airline formed in 1947. It began as an air taxi operator at Croydon Airport. In 1953, it started inclusive tour charter flights. By 1957, Transair became part of the Airwork...
on a non-scheduled flight between Barcelona Airport in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
to London-Gatwick Airport in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
crashed in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. The aircraft, which was carrying 29 students home to England, had been chartered by the National Union of Students to conduct regular weekly flights from Gatwick to Barcelona. It was the first accident suffered by a Transair aircraft following the airline's formation in 1947.
Accident
The aircraft, registeredAircraft registration
An aircraft registration is a unique alphanumeric string that identifies a civil aircraft, in similar fashion to a licence plate on an automobile...
G-AMZD, had arrived early on the day of the accident at Barcelona from Gatwick with a party of students on board, and was scheduled to return to London with another group of students who were returning home from a holiday in Majorca. The flight was conducted under visual flight rules
Visual flight rules
Visual flight rules are a set of regulations which allow a pilot to operate an aircraft in weather conditions generally clear enough to allow the pilot to see where the aircraft is going. Specifically, the weather must be better than basic VFR weather minimums, as specified in the rules of the...
(VFR); however, 19 minutes after departure from Barcelona, the Dakota, while climbing to its cruising altitude, entered cloud and struck Turó de l'Home
Turó de l'Home
Turó de l'Home is a mountain of Catalonia, Spain, part of the Montseny massif. It has an altitude of 1,712 metres above sea level.The top of the mountain is a triangulation station. It was the site of the 1959 Transair Douglas Dakota accident....
, a mountain north east of Barcelona. At the time of the accident the aircraft was 10 nautical miles (18.5 km) off of its intended flight path. Locals reported that at the time of the crash it was misty in the area.
An official at a nearby water station raised the alarm upon observing the crash; upon arrival, the Spanish Civil Guard
Civil Guard (Spain)
The Civil Guard is the Spanish gendarmerie. It has foreign peace-keeping missions and maintains military status and is the equivalent of a federal military-status police force. As a police force, the Guardia Civil is comparable today to the French Gendarmerie, the Italian Carabinieri and the...
found the wreckage of the aircraft had been burnt out by a post-impact fire; All 29 passengers and three crew were killed.
Probable cause
Following an investigation of the accident, a report from the Spanish Director-General of Civil Aviation stated: The Director-General also stated that the evidence did not indicate that Spanish Air Traffic ControlAir traffic control
Air traffic control is a service provided by ground-based controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and in the air. The primary purpose of ATC systems worldwide is to separate aircraft to prevent collisions, to organize and expedite the flow of traffic, and to provide information and other...
personnel were responsible for the crash through their actions in any way; in addition, there was no evidence found that any defects in aids to navigation contributed to the accident. Accordingly, the British Air Ministry
Air Ministry
The Air Ministry was a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964...
, also investigating the crash, resolved to close the case without allocating responsibility. It was concluded that the pilot should not have entered cloud without advising air traffic control that he required an instrument flight clearance; it was presumed that the pilot was unaware that Turó de l'Home, 1712 metres (5,616.8 ft) in height, was in the path of the aircraft at the time the Dakota entered the clouds.