ASN Aircraft accident Shorts S.26 G Class G-AFCK Tagus River, off Lisbon
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Status:
Date:Saturday 9 January 1943
Type:Silhouette image of generic ss26 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different
Shorts S.26 G Class
Operator:British Overseas Airways Corporation - BOAC
Registration: G-AFCK
MSN: S.873
First flight: 1940-02-24 (2 years 11 months)
Engines: 4 Bristol Perseus XIIc
Crew:Fatalities: 5 / Occupants: 6
Passengers:Fatalities: 8 / Occupants: 9
Total:Fatalities: 13 / Occupants: 15
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Aircraft fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location:Tagus River, off Lisbon (   Portugal)
Phase: En route (ENR)
Nature:Test
Departure airport:?
Destination airport:?
Narrative:
Short S.30 Empire Flying Boat G-AFCK, named 'Golden Horn' departed from Lisbon on December 30, 1942. The flying boat returned to Lisbon due to a failure in the no. 4 engine.
A replacement engine had to be ordered. On the subsequent test flight on January 9, 1943, a fire broke out in the no. 3 engine due to a failure of the no.4 cylinder. The propellers could not be feathered and once the oil-fuelled fire took hold it could not be controlled.
The cockpit was filling with thick smoke. The co-pilot had opened his window which drew more smoke from further aft in the cabin onto the flight deck. The captain attempted an emergency landing on the Tagus River.
On landing the aircraft porpoised and crashed, disintegrating. There were six authorised crew and a further nine unauthorised passengers. Only two survived the crash.

Sources:
» pprune Forum


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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.
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Short S.26

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