Bergamo – London-Heathrow

On September 26, 1946 at 06:00 AM, Bergamo – London-Heathrow experienced a crash involving Handley Page H.P.70 Halifax VIII, operated by London Aero %26 Motor Services - LAMS, with the event recorded near Knokke-Heist West Flanders.

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

4 people were known to be on board, 1 fatalities were recorded, 3 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 25.0%.

Crew on board: 3, crew fatalities: 0, passengers on board: 1, passenger fatalities: 1, other fatalities: 0.

The listed crash cause is human factor. Enroute, the pilot encountered technical problems and was unable to receive Radio Navigation Directional Bearings. To avoid any fuel shortage, he decided to ditch the aircraft off Knokke-Heist in the early morning. The aircraft landed about 100 yards offshore and sank. While all three crew members were able to swim to the beach, the passenger, a Norwegian citizen, was drowned. The aircraft was carrying a load of grapes.

Aircraft reference details include registration G-AHZN, MSN 1328, year of manufacture 1946.

Geospatial coordinates for this crash are approximately 51.3462°, 3.2634°.