Kinshasa – Abidjan – Dakar – Agadir – Basel – Liverpool

On July 26, 1970 at 02:45 PM, Kinshasa – Abidjan – Dakar – Agadir – Basel – Liverpool experienced a crash involving Douglas DC-7, operated by ARCO Bermuda, with the event recorded near Abidjan Lagunes.

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

4 people were known to be on board, 0 fatalities were recorded, 4 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 0.0%.

Crew on board: 4, crew fatalities: 0, passengers on board: 0, passenger fatalities: 0, other fatalities: 0.

The listed crash cause is technical failure. The crew was completing a ferry flight from Kinshasa to Liverpool with several intermediate stops in Abidjan, Dakar, Agadir and Basel. The purpose of the flight was for maintenance as the n°4 engine was inoperative. En route, while cruising on the three remaining engines, the crew informed ATC that the engine n°3 caught fire. While descending to an altitude of 6,000 feet, the engine n°3 exploded and detached. The crew continued the approach but was unable to lower the undercarriage. A belly landing was completed at Abidjan Airport and the airplane slid on several dozen meters before coming to rest. All four crew members escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Aircraft reference details include registration VR-BCT, MSN 44875/668, year of manufacture 1956.

Geospatial coordinates for this crash are approximately 5.6756°, -4.5697°.