Concepción – Santiago

On October 6, 1978 at 12:00 AM, Concepción – Santiago experienced a crash involving Douglas DC-6, operated by United States Navy - USN, with the event recorded near Santiago de Chile Región Metropolitana de Santiago.

The flight was categorized as military and the reported phase was landing (descent or approach) at a mountains crash site.

16 people were known to be on board, 16 fatalities were recorded, 0 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 100.0%.

Crew on board: 8, crew fatalities: 8, passengers on board: 8, passenger fatalities: 8, other fatalities: 0.

The four engine airplane was flying from Concepción to Santiago and was carrying eight passengers and eight crew members taking part to 'Operation Unitas', a joint training exercise by the navies of the US, Peru and Chile. While approaching Santiago-Pudahuel Airport, the crew encountered poor weather conditions. Due to limited visibility, the captain decided to initiate a go-around manoeuvre. Few minutes later, while circling for another approach at an altitude of 2,600 feet, the airplane struck a mountain (3,000 feet high) located about 17 km south of the airport. The aircraft was destroyed upon impact and all 16 occupants were killed.

Aircraft reference details include registration 131618, MSN 43721, year of manufacture 1953.

Geospatial coordinates for this crash are approximately -33.4055°, -70.5744°.