Far Eastern Air Transport Flight 104

Far Eastern Transport Flight 104
Investigators at the wreckage of B-2009.
Accident
DateFebruary 24, 1969 (1969-02-24)
SummaryEngine failure
SiteNear Tainan City, Taiwan
Aircraft

The Handley Page Dart Herald involved in the accident, seen in June 1966 while still in service with British United Airways
Aircraft typeHandley Page Dart Herald 201
OperatorFar Eastern Air Transport
RegistrationB-2009
Flight originKaohsiung International Airport
DestinationTaipei Songshan Airport
Occupants36
Passengers32
Crew4
Fatalities36
Survivors0

Far Eastern Air Transport Flight 104 was a short-haul flight from Kaohsiung International Airport to Taipei Songshan Airport, Taiwan, which was operated a Handley Page Dart Herald 201 that crashed on 24 February 1969 upon its approach for an emergency landing in Tainan Airport in Taiwan.[1]

Aircraft

The aircraft operating flight 104 was a Handley Page Dart Herald 201, MSN 157 and was registered B-2009. The aircraft was manufactured in 1963 at the Radlett Aerodrom in the UK with its registration G-APWI. It was then bought by Jersey Airlines, then British United Airways then BUIA. It soon went to be purchased by Far Eastern Air Transport.

Accident

On February 24, 1969, the B-2009 aircraft carried out the FE104 flight that ended the Spring Festival holiday and flew from Kaohsiung International Airport to Taipei Songshan Airport. The flight took off at 12:03 pm, after a 13-minute delay from 11:50 am. Ten minutes after take-off, the captain told the Tainan Airport Tower that an engine failure had occurred. The aircraft's port-side engine had failed, leaving its propeller windmilling and the aircraft in a shallow descent. The flight crew decided to divert to Tainan Airport in Tainan City. Moments after receiving clearance for an emergency landing, however, the aircraft passed over a wooded area, belly-landed in a small clearing and skidded into a creek. The aircraft broke into three parts and caught fire, killing all on board.

Cause

The crash was believed to have an engine failure mid-flight. The crew failed to feather the propeller that was making high drag, leading it to lose control.

References

  1. ^ "Accident Handley Page HPR-7 Herald 201 B-2009, Monday 24 February 1969". asn.flightsafety.org. Retrieved 5 August 2024.