Status: | |
Date: | Monday 18 December 1939 |
Time: | 08:15 |
Type: | Junkers Ju-52/3m |
Operator: | Iberia |
Registration: | M-CABA |
MSN: | 5854 |
First flight: | |
Crew: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 |
Passengers: | Fatalities: 7 / Occupants: 7 |
Total: | Fatalities: 10 / Occupants: 10 |
Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
Aircraft fate: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
Location: | 10 km (6.3 mls) S off Europa Point [Strait of Gibraltar] ( Gibraltar)
|
Phase: | En route (ENR) |
Nature: | International Scheduled Passenger |
Departure airport: | Tétouan Airport (TTU/GMTN), Morocco |
Destination airport: | Sevilla Airport (SVQ/LEZL), Spain |
Narrative:A Junkers Ju-52/3m aircraft, named "Sanjurjo" and operated by Iberia, crashed at sea while on a flight from Tétouan, Morocco to Sevilla, Spain. The three crew and seven passengers were killed.
Along the flight route the sky was completely overcast and a storm, accompanied by thunder and lightning, stretched along the Strait of Gibraltar. The flight took off at 08:00 hours. At 08:14 hours, after passing Ceuta, the flight radioed that they would use the hanging antenna for long-distance communications. That was the last contact.
At 08:15 the aircraft was observed flying by an English patrol boat at 1500 feet in heavy downpour. The aircraft subsequently was seen to crash in flames. Only small pieces of debris and the tail wheel were found.
Rumours, initiated by the German secret service, suggested at the time that the aircraft was shot down from the Rock of Gibraltar or from an English warship. This was not deemed likely.
Sources:
» History of the Air Force of Spain
» The Hugo Junkers Homepage
» Jet & Prop 6/08
»
El Litoral 18 Dec 1939»
Enigma, vuelo Tetuán-Sevilla, 1939 (ABC.es, 13 Jul 2008)
Photos
Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does
not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Tétouan Airport to Sevilla Airport as the crow flies is 208 km (130 miles).
Accident location: Approximate; accuracy within a few kilometers.
This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.