Zurich - Zurich

The aircraft departed Zurich-Kloten at 0857LT on a local training flight, carrying one instructor, five student pilots, two engineers and one technician. The airplane followed different circuits at an altitude between 1,000 and 3,000 meters when control was lost over the Constance Lake. The aircraft went into a spin and crashed into the lake about 4 km off Romanshorn. The wreckage sank by a depth of 200 meters and only few debris were found on water and on the bank between Romanshorn and Arbon. All nine occupants have been killed.

Flight / Schedule

Zurich - Zurich

Registration

HB-IRK

MSN

20737

Year of Manufacture

1944

Operator

Swissair

Date

June 19, 1957 at 10:20 AM

Type

CRASH

Flight Type

Training

Flight Phase

Flight

Crash Site

Lake, Sea, Ocean, River

Crash Location

Romanshorn Thurgau

Region

Europe • Switzerland

Coordinates

47.5654°, 9.3776°

Crash Cause

Human factor

Narrative Report

On June 19, 1957 at 10:20 AM, Zurich - Zurich experienced a crash involving Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3), operated by Swissair, with the event recorded near Romanshorn Thurgau.

The flight was categorized as training and the reported phase was flight at a lake, sea, ocean, river crash site.

9 people were known to be on board, 9 fatalities were recorded, 0 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 100.0%.

Crew on board: 9, crew fatalities: 9, passengers on board: 0, passenger fatalities: 0, other fatalities: 0.

The listed crash cause is human factor. The aircraft departed Zurich-Kloten at 0857LT on a local training flight, carrying one instructor, five student pilots, two engineers and one technician. The airplane followed different circuits at an altitude between 1,000 and 3,000 meters when control was lost over the Constance Lake. The aircraft went into a spin and crashed into the lake about 4 km off Romanshorn. The wreckage sank by a depth of 200 meters and only few debris were found on water and on the bank between Romanshorn and Arbon. All nine occupants have been killed.

Aircraft reference details include registration HB-IRK, MSN 20737, year of manufacture 1944.

Geospatial coordinates for this crash are approximately 47.5654°, 9.3776°.

Fatalities

Total

9

Crew

9

Passengers

0

Other

0

Crash Summary

The aircraft departed Zurich-Kloten at 0857LT on a local training flight, carrying one instructor, five student pilots, two engineers and one technician. The airplane followed different circuits at an altitude between 1,000 and 3,000 meters when control was lost over the Constance Lake. The aircraft went into a spin and crashed into the lake about 4 km off Romanshorn. The wreckage sank by a depth of 200 meters and only few debris were found on water and on the bank between Romanshorn and Arbon. All nine occupants have been killed.

Cause: Human factor

Occupants & Outcome

Crew On Board

9

Passengers On Board

0

Estimated Survivors

0

Fatality Rate

100.0%

Known people on board: 9

Operational Details

Schedule / Flight

Zurich - Zurich

Operator

Swissair

Flight Type

Training

Flight Phase

Flight

Crash Site

Lake, Sea, Ocean, River

Region / Country

Europe • Switzerland

Aircraft Details

Registration

HB-IRK

MSN

20737

Year of Manufacture

1944

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