List of accidents and incidents involving the DC-3 since 2000
This is a list of accidents and incidents involving the Douglas DC-3A that have taken place since 1 January 2000, including aircraft based on the DC-3 airframe such as the Douglas C-47 Skytrain, Basler BT-67 and Lisunov Li-2. Military accidents are included; and hijackings and incidents of terrorism are covered, although acts of war are outside the scope of this list.
2000
17 March
Douglas DC-3C C-FNTF of Points North Air Services crashed at Ennadai Lake Airport in Canada while attempting a go-around. Both crew died; the cause was found to be that the aircraft's centre of gravity was too far to the rear, possibly due to the cargo shifting in flight. Both crew members were found to have high levels of carboxyhaemoglobin in their blood. The flight had departed from Points North Landing Airport, Points North Landing, Saskatchewan.[1][2]
Basler BT-67 FAC1659 of the Fuerza Aérea Colombiana was destroyed when it flew into the 11,200-foot (3,400 m) high Mount Montezuma in Colombia; all seven on board died.[4]
9 November
In El Salvador, Basler BT-67 FAS119 of the Fuerza Aérea Salvadoreña was damaged beyond economic repair on landing at Los Comandos Airport, Los Comandos. The aircraft suffered brake failure, overran the runway and collided with a tree.[5]
Air Katanga Douglas C-53 ZS-OJD was written off in a landing accident at Lubumbashi International Airport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, after a delivery flight that originated in South Africa.[18][19]
2002
21 May
In the United States, Douglas DC-3A XB-JBR of Aero JBR ditched in Lake Casa Blanca, Texas, after a double engine failure while performing a touch-and-go at Laredo International Airport.[20] It is reported that one of the engines suffered a propeller overspeed condition. All three crew escaped from the submerged aircraft.[21]
2003
AMI DC-3-65TP
10 March
Aero Modifications International (AMI) DC-3-65TPA ZS-MFY of Rossair Contracts was substantially damaged in a landing accident at Rumbek Airport in Sudan due to encountering windshear. The aircraft was repaired, and flown out on 17 April 2003.[22][23]
Douglas DC-3 HK-2663 of Arall Colombia was substantially damaged when it overran the runway at Puerto Gaitán Airport in Puerto Gaitán, Colombia. The aircraft was on a domestic scheduled passenger flight from Barrancominas Airport to La Vanguardia Airport, Villavicencio when the starboard engine started vibrating and a diversion was made. Although substantially damaged, the aircraft was subsequently repaired and returned to service.[39]
In the United States, Douglas R4D-8 N3906J of Air Pony Express suffered an engine failure shortly after take-off from Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on an international cargo flight to Marsh Harbour Airport, Marsh Harbour, Bahamas. The aircraft was written off when it was put down on a street in the Coral Ridge Isles residential neighbourhood of Fort Lauderdale, hitting trees, parked cars and a building and subsequently catching fire. The engine that failed had had maintenance work performed immediately before the accident flight.[41][42][43]
19 June
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Douglas C-47B 9Q-CWI of Wimbi Dira Airways was damaged beyond repair when it suffered a groundloop on landing at Kabalo Airport, Kabalo. The aircraft ended up in a minefield and the wreckage remains in situ.[44][45]
Douglas DC-3C HK-1149 of AeroVanguardia was substantially damaged when a forced landing was made in a rice field at Puerto Concordia in Colombia. The aircraft was on a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Jorge Enrique González Torres Airport, an José del Guaviare to La Vanguardia Airport, Villavicencio when an engine failed.[51]
20 December
Basler BT-67 C-FMKB of Kenn Borek Air was substantially damaged in a take-off accident at Mount Patterson, Antarctica when the take-off was attempted with insufficient speed for flight. Of the 12 people on board, only the co-pilot suffered minor injuries. Although both sets of undercarriage collapsed and the port wing was damaged, the aircraft was later repaired and returned to service.[52][53]
In the United States, Douglas DC-3-65/ARA N834TP of the National Test Pilot School was substantially damaged in a take-off accident at Mojave Air and Space Port, Mojave, California. Both sets of undercarriage and the port engine were ripped off. The aircraft was on a local training flight. The accident was caused by an incorrectly set rudder trim.[57][58]
Douglas DC-3C HK-4700 of LASER Aéro Colombia was substantially damaged after its brakes failed during landing at Guerima Airport in Colombia; the aircraft was on a domestic cargo flight from Villavicencio. During the landing roll the hydraulic system lost pressure after the hose to the starboard main landing gear brake assembly failed; the pilot shut down both engines but lost control while trying to steer the aircraft without brakes; and it swerved off the runway and into a ditch, seriously damaging the starboard wing.[68]
2012
5 December
A South African Air Force C-47TP of 35 Squadron SAAF went missing in bad weather conditions en route from Waterkloof Air Force base in Pretoria to Qunu in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The wreckage was later found in Giant's Castle during search and rescue operations, in the Drakensberg in KwaZulu-Natal. All 11 passengers and crew members on board died.[69]
20 December
In Antarctica, Basler BT-67 C-GEAI of Kenn Borek Air was substantially damaged while attempting to take off from a glacier at Holtanna Peak. It lifted off prematurely after the aircraft's wheels hit a snowbank during its takeoff roll. The aircraft stalled at a low level and it hit the ground, tearing off the landing gear. Of the 15 passengers and two crew on board, two received slight injuries, the others were uninjured.[70]
2013
19 August
In Canada, Buffalo Airways Flight 168, operated by Douglas DC-3C C-GWIR, suffered an engine fire on take off from Yellowknife Airport for Hay River Airport. The aircraft was substantially damaged when it made a wheels-up landing short of Runway 10. There were no injuries amongst the 21 passengers and three crew.[71][72]
2014
8 May
Douglas DC-3C HK-4700 of ALIANSA Colombia was destroyed in crash in mountainous terrain in Colombia while en route on a domestic cargo flight from Villavicencio to Florencia, Caquetá. All five passengers and crew were killed. The same aircraft had been damaged in a landing accident three-and-a-half years earlier, on 6 November 2010.[68][73][74]
In the United States, Douglas DC-3C-65TP N467KS of Priority Air Charter struck power lines and trees and crashed just after takeoff from Stoltzfus Airfield, Kidron, Ohio, killing the pilot and co-pilot.[79][80]
in Canada, a Basler BT-67 of North Star Air ditched in a lake near Eabametoong, Ontario. Both crew survived.[84] Inadvertent movement of fuel levers was determined to be a likely cause.[85]
3 December
in Canada, a Basler BT-67 of North Star Air contacted trees and impacted ground amidst a forest on approach to Sachigo Lake, Ontario. Both crew survived.[86]
2021
28 February
Douglas DC-3C HK-2006 of ALIANSA Colombia crashed on landing at Monfort Airport; all three on board survived.[87]
8 July
In Colombia, a Douglas DC-3, registration HK-2820, went missing in Colombia and is understood to have crashed at Guatiquia canyon, with three people on board. The aircraft belongs to a regional cargo carrier called Aliansa Aerolíneas Andinas.[88]
^Note A Military versions of the DC-3 were known as C-47 Skytrain, C-48, C-49, C-50, C-51, C-52, C-53 Skytrooper, C-68, C-84, C-117 and YC-129 by the United States Army Air Forces and the United States Air Force; and as the R4D and C-117 by the United States Navy. In Royal Air Force (and other British Commonwealth air forces') service, these aircraft were known as Dakotas. A number of DC-3s have been rebuilt with turboprop engines and have a variety of designations. The Basler BT-67 is probably the best known of these; others include the DC-3-65/AR and the AMI DC-3-65TP. Licence-built aircraft include the Lisunov Li-2 and Showa L2D.
^"Accident description". Bureau d'Archives des Accidents Aéronautiques / Aircraft Crashes Record Office. Archived from the original on 25 June 2009. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
