Accident Douglas C-47B-40-DK (DC-3) VP-KKH,

ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 334890

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Date:	Wednesday 18 May 1955
Time:	12:25
Type:	Douglas C-47B-40-DK (DC-3)
Owner/operator:	East African Airways Corp. - EAAC
Registration:	VP-KKH
MSN:	33568/16820
Year of manufacture:	1945
Total airframe hrs:	7199 hours
Engine model:	Pratt & Whitney R-1830-90D
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 20 / Occupants: 20
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed, written off
Category:	Accident
Location:	Mount Kilimanjaro - Tanzania
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Passenger - Scheduled
Departure airport:	Dar es Salaam International Airport (DAR/HTDA)
Destination airport:	Nairobi-West Airport (WIL/HKNW)
Investigating agency:	CoI
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
East African Flight EC104 departed Dar es Salaam (DAR) at 10:39 for the last leg of a flight to Nairobi (WIL). Last position report was at 11:56 when the pilot reported over Lake Jipe in visual flight on top of the clouds at FL105. Nothing more was heard from the flight. The wreckage was found on May 22, 1955 on the south-east slope of Mawenzi (one of the two peaks of Mount Kilimanjaro) at an elevation of 15200 feet.

PROBABLE CAUSE: "The pilot's decision to proceed on the direct track to Nairobi, and this consideration is not affected even if he intended to divert in the vicinity of Kilimanjaro. The meteorological conditions were marginal and his first mistake occurred in not discussing the weather with the meteorological forecaster. Had he done so he might well have decided to proceed via Tanga, although in making this decision he might have been influenced by the fact that there were no specific instructions regarding an alternate route. It must be remembered, however, that he was fairly new in the Corporation and he might have thought it impolite to depart from normal practice."

Accident investigation: