1962 Godthab Catalina crash

On 12 May 1962, an Eastern Provincial Airways Canso amphibian flying boat sank at Godthåb (now Nuuk) in Greenland, causing the death of 15 passengers.[1]

1962 Goodthab Catalina crash
A Consolidated PBY-5A similar to the accident aircraft
Accident
Date12 May 1962
SummarySank on landing
SiteGodthab harbour
Aircraft
Aircraft typeCanadian-Vickers PBY-5A Canso
OperatorEastern Provincial Airways
RegistrationCF-IHA
Flight originKangerlussuaq Airport, Greenland
DestinationGodthåb, Greenland
Passengers18
Crew3
Fatalities15
Survivors6

Accident

The Catalina was operating a scheduled flight from Kangerlussuaq Airport to Godthåb for Greenlandair with 21 on board, while landing on the water at Goodthab harbour it sank with 15 passengers being killed.[1] Initial reports were that the aircraft had hit debris on the water.[2]

Aircraft

The aircraft CF-IHA was a Canadian-built variant of the Consolidated Catalina built by Canadian-Vickers in 1944.[1] It was built for the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) with serial number 11058 until it was sold in 1947.

Investigation

A technical investigation concluded that the nose wheel doors had not closed properly probably due to mechanical failure.[1] With a gap of 70mm, the doors were torn off on landing letting water into the nose wheel bay, the pressure of water caused a bulkhead to fail and the aircraft to sink.[1]

References
  1. Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 10 February 2018.
  2. "Eastern Provincial Airways Accident". Flight International. 24 May 1962. p. 816.
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