2012 South African Air Force C-47 crash

(Redirected from 2012 Drakensberg SAAF Dakota crash)

2012 South African Air Force C-47 crash
Accident
6840, the C-47 Dakota involved in the accident, photographed in 2010
Date	5 December 2012 (2012-12-05)
Summary	Pilot error
Site	Drakensberg Mountains, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Douglas C-47 Dakota
Operator	35 Sqn, South African Air Force
Registration	6840
Flight origin	AFB Waterkloof, Pretoria, South Africa
Destination	Mthatha Airport, South Africa
Occupants	11
Passengers	6
Crew	5
Fatalities	11
Survivors	0

On 5 December 2012, a Douglas C-47 Dakota of the South African Air Force crashed in the Drakensberg Mountains, South Africa, killing all eleven people on board.

Accident

The aircraft was on a flight from AFB Waterkloof to Mthatha Airport when it crashed near Giant's Castle in the Drakensberg, killing all eleven people on board. Shortly before the crash at 09:45 hours South African Standard Time (07:45 UTC), the crew reported that they were flying on instruments at 11,000 feet (3,400 m) in instrument meteorological conditions.

On board were six crew members and five passengers. Former South African President Nelson Mandela's medical team were initially reported to have been on board the aircraft, but this was later found not to be the case. An initial search by an Atlas Oryx helicopter had to be abandoned due to poor visibility.

Aircraft

The aircraft involved was Douglas C-47TP, tail number 6840, c/n 13866. It had been built in 1943 as 43-48050 for the United States Army Air Forces and was transferred to the Royal Air Force in 1944 as KG767 before being immediately transferred to the South African Air Force as 6840. In the early 1990s, the aircraft was modified with Pratt & Whitney Canada PT-6A turboprop engines and a fuselage extension. Based at AFB Ysterplaat, Cape Town, it was mainly used in the maritime patrol role but also acted as a support aircraft for the Silver Falcons display team.

Investigation

A Board of Inquiry was convened by the South African Air Force to investigate the cause of the accident.

References

2012 C-47TP Drakensberg crash was avoidable – Inquiry
^ "Dakota tragedy in SA". Aeroplane (March 2013). Cudham: Kelsey Publishing: 14. ISSN 0143-7240.
^ Majumdar, Dave (6 December 2012). "11 killed in South African Air Force C-47 Dakota crash". Flight International. Retrieved 4 February 2013.
^ "6840 Accident description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 4 February 2013.
Enoch, Benita; Moolla, Yusuf; Magome, Mogomotsi (6 December 2012). "Plane wreckage found in Drakensberg". Independent Online. South Africa. Retrieved 4 February 2013.
"NAMES OF DRAKENSBERG PLANE CRASH VICTIMS RELEASED". SA Breaking News. 6 December 2012. Archived from the original on 7 February 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2013.

v t e Aviation accidents and incidents in 2012 (2012)
Jan 7 Carterton hot air balloon crashJan 23 Timona Park plane crashFeb 12 Katanga Express Gulfstream crashMar 15 Norwegian Air Force C-130 crashMar 27 JetBlue Flight 191Apr 2 UTair Flight 120Apr 6 Virginia Beach F/A-18 crashApr 20 Bhoja Air Flight 213May 9 Mount Salak Sukhoi Superjet crashMay 14 Agni Air Dornier 228 crashJun 2 Allied Air Flight 111Jun 3 Dana Air Flight 0992Jun 10 Kenya Police helicopter crashJun 21 Indonesian Air Force F27 crashJun 22 Turkish F-4 Phantom shootdownJun 29 Tianjin Airlines Flight 7554Jul 20 Rampayoh helicopter crashAug 18 Philippines Piper Seneca crashAug 19 Sudan Antonov An-26 crashAug 23 Ljubljana Marshes hot air balloon crashSep 12 Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Air Flight 251Sep 28 Sita Air Flight 601Oct 1 Queensland DH.84 Dragon crashOct 7 FlyMontserrat Flight 107Nov 30 Aéro-Service Ilyushin Il-76 crashDec 5 South African Air Force C-47 crashDec 9 Mexico Learjet 25 crashDec 17 Amazon Sky An-26 crashDec 21 Nizhnevartovskavia Flight 544Dec 25 Air Bagan Flight 011Dec 25 Kazakhstan Antonov An-72 crashDec 29 Red Wings Airlines Flight 9268
2011 ◄ ► 2013

Aviation accidents and incidents in 2012 (2012)

Jan 7 Carterton hot air balloon crashJan 23 Timona Park plane crashFeb 12 Katanga Express Gulfstream crashMar 15 Norwegian Air Force C-130 crashMar 27 JetBlue Flight 191Apr 2 UTair Flight 120Apr 6 Virginia Beach F/A-18 crashApr 20 Bhoja Air Flight 213May 9 Mount Salak Sukhoi Superjet crashMay 14 Agni Air Dornier 228 crashJun 2 Allied Air Flight 111Jun 3 Dana Air Flight 0992Jun 10 Kenya Police helicopter crashJun 21 Indonesian Air Force F27 crashJun 22 Turkish F-4 Phantom shootdownJun 29 Tianjin Airlines Flight 7554Jul 20 Rampayoh helicopter crashAug 18 Philippines Piper Seneca crashAug 19 Sudan Antonov An-26 crashAug 23 Ljubljana Marshes hot air balloon crashSep 12 Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Air Flight 251Sep 28 Sita Air Flight 601Oct 1 Queensland DH.84 Dragon crashOct 7 FlyMontserrat Flight 107Nov 30 Aéro-Service Ilyushin Il-76 crashDec 5 South African Air Force C-47 crashDec 9 Mexico Learjet 25 crashDec 17 Amazon Sky An-26 crashDec 21 Nizhnevartovskavia Flight 544Dec 25 Air Bagan Flight 011Dec 25 Kazakhstan Antonov An-72 crashDec 29 Red Wings Airlines Flight 9268

2011 ◄ ► 2013

v t e Aviation accidents and incidents in South Africa
20th century	South African Airways Flight 406 (March 1967) South African Air Force Hawker-Siddeley HS125 crash (May 1971) Mozambican Tupolev Tu-134 crash (October 1986) South African Airways Flight 295 (November 1987) Comair Flight 206 (March 1988)
21st century	Nationwide Airlines Flight 723 (November 2007) South African Airlink Flight 8911 (September 2009) Piaggio Albatross crash (August 2011) South African Air Force C-47 crash (December 2012) Pretoria Convair 340 crash (July 2018)

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