Vickers VC.1 Viking - Accidents and Incidents

Accidents and Incidents

Of the 163 aircraft built 56 aircraft were lost in accidents – the following were some notable accidents:

• 5 April 1948 (1948-04-05) – G-AIVP operated by British European Airways collided with a Soviet Yak-3 near Berlin, 15 killed.
• 21 April 1948 (1948-04-21) – British European Airways Flight S200P (G-AIVE) crashed on approach to Glasgow-Renfrew Airport. No one was killed but 14 were injured.
• 8 February 1949 (1949-02-08) – OY-DLU operated by Det Danske Luftfartselskab (DDL) crashed into the sea off Copenhagen, Denmark, with the loss of all 27 occupants.
• 31 October 1950 (1950-10-31) – G-AHPN operated by British European Airways crashed during a Ground Control Approach landing in bad visibility (40-50 yd) at London Northolt airport, England. The pilot failed to overshoot and 25 passengers and three crew died. It was subsequently recommended that it be an offence for aircraft to go below a minimum height when ground visibility was low.
• 17 February 1952 (1952-02-17) – G-AHPI operated by Hunting Air Travel flew into the La Cinta mountain range, Italy, with the loss of all 31 occupants.
• 5 January 1953 (1953-01-05) – G-AJDL operated by British European Airways crashed on approach at Belfast-Nutts Corner Airport, Northern Ireland, three crew and 24 passengers died.
• 1 May 1957 (1957-05-01) – G-AJBO operated by Eagle Aviation crashed after engine failure near Blackbushe Airport, England, five crew and 29 passengers died.
• 2 September 1958 (1958-09-02) – G-AIJE operated by Independent Air Travel crashed into a house as the flight crew were trying to return to London Heathrow Airport after reporting engine problems. All three crew died and four on the ground also died.
• 9 August 1961 (1961-08-09) – G-AHPM operated by Cunard Eagle Airways crashed into a mountainside near Holta on approach to Stavanger Airport, Sola in Norway with the loss of all 39 occupants. The Norwegian report on the incident concluded that the pilot was off-course for unknown reasons. The 50th anniversary] was marked by a book published in summer 2011, The Lanfranc Boys by Rosalind Jones, sister of Quentin Green, one of the victims.
• 11 September 1963 (1963-09-11) – F-BJER operated by Airnautic crashed into a mountain in the Pyrenees with the loss of all 40 occupants, the worst Viking accident.