Panama City – Manaus – São Paulo

On an ILS approach to Ponta Pelada AFB on a cargo flight from Panama City to São Paulo, the airplane was not properly aligned and was too high on the glide. The captain overcorrected, causing the airplane to adopt a high sink rate. In a nose-down attitude, the nose gear struck a concrete wall located 12 meters short of runway threshold and was torn off. The airplane landed on its nose and slid for about 300 meters before coming to rest. All three crew members escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Flight / Schedule

Panama City – Manaus – São Paulo

Aircraft

Douglas DC-6

Registration

HP-539

MSN

43526/241

Year of Manufacture

1952

Date

April 10, 1972 at 12:00 AM

Type

CRASH

Flight Type

Cargo

Flight Phase

Landing (descent or approach)

Crash Site

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Crash Location

Ponta Pelada AFB, Manaus Amazonas

Region

South America • Brazil

Coordinates

-3.1451°, -59.9856°

Crash Cause

Human factor

Narrative Report

On April 10, 1972 at 12:00 AM, Panama City – Manaus – São Paulo experienced a crash involving Douglas DC-6, operated by Inair Panama - Internacional de Aviación, with the event recorded near Ponta Pelada AFB, Manaus Amazonas.

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

3 people were known to be on board, 0 fatalities were recorded, 3 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 0.0%.

Crew on board: 3, crew fatalities: 0, passengers on board: 0, passenger fatalities: 0, other fatalities: 0.

The listed crash cause is human factor. On an ILS approach to Ponta Pelada AFB on a cargo flight from Panama City to São Paulo, the airplane was not properly aligned and was too high on the glide. The captain overcorrected, causing the airplane to adopt a high sink rate. In a nose-down attitude, the nose gear struck a concrete wall located 12 meters short of runway threshold and was torn off. The airplane landed on its nose and slid for about 300 meters before coming to rest. All three crew members escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Aircraft reference details include registration HP-539, MSN 43526/241, year of manufacture 1952.

Geospatial coordinates for this crash are approximately -3.1451°, -59.9856°.

Fatalities

Total

0

Crew

0

Passengers

0

Other

0

Crash Summary

On an ILS approach to Ponta Pelada AFB on a cargo flight from Panama City to São Paulo, the airplane was not properly aligned and was too high on the glide. The captain overcorrected, causing the airplane to adopt a high sink rate. In a nose-down attitude, the nose gear struck a concrete wall located 12 meters short of runway threshold and was torn off. The airplane landed on its nose and slid for about 300 meters before coming to rest. All three crew members escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Cause: Human factor

Occupants & Outcome

Crew On Board

3

Passengers On Board

0

Estimated Survivors

3

Fatality Rate

0.0%

Known people on board: 3

Operational Details

Schedule / Flight

Panama City – Manaus – São Paulo

Flight Type

Cargo

Flight Phase

Landing (descent or approach)

Crash Site

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Region / Country

South America • Brazil

Aircraft Details

Aircraft

Douglas DC-6

Registration

HP-539

MSN

43526/241

Year of Manufacture

1952

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