Paris – New York

On July 13, 1929 at 08:00 AM, Paris – New York experienced a crash involving Amiot 122/123, operated by Polish Government, with the event recorded near Horta Azores Islands.

The flight was categorized as private and the reported phase was landing (descent or approach) at a airport (less than 10 km from airport) crash site.

2 people were known to be on board, 1 fatalities were recorded, 1 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 50.0%.

Crew on board: 2, crew fatalities: 1, passengers on board: 0, passenger fatalities: 0, other fatalities: 0.

The listed crash cause is technical failure. Both pilots Casimir Kubala and Ludwik Idzikowski attempted to cross the Atlantic Ocean from Paris to New York. A first attempt was made in July 1928 without success. Named 'Marszalek Pilsudski', the aircraft was bought by the Polish Government and was equipped with the Polish Air Force roundel. The crew departed Paris-Le Bourget Airport at 0345LT bound to the west to the Atlantic Ocean. More than an hour later, the engine surged and the crew decided to divert to the Azores Islands. Four hours later, the engine was about to fail so the crew diverted to Horta. On final approach, the aircraft was too low and hit a rocky wall short of runway. It overturned and came to rest upside down, bursting into flames. While Casimir Kubala was slightly injured, Ludwik Idzikowski was killed. The Amiot 123 was built at one example expressly for the Polish Government to attempt this cross Atlantic flight.

Aircraft reference details include registration SP-APO, MSN 1, year of manufacture 1929.