This Day in History: 1946-03-10

On Sunday 10 March 1946 an Australian National Airways Douglas DC-3 (VH-AET) crashed into the sea less than two minutes after takeoff from Cambridge aerodrome in Hobart, killing all 25 people on board. It was Australia’s worst civil aviation accident at the time. Investigation in those days—before flight data recorders and cockpit voice recorders were invented—was difficult and uncertain. An investigation panel put forward possible causal factors for the crash were put forward: inadvertent engagement of the autopilot, pilot incapacitation, due to the unreported diabetes of the pilot, and bird strike. The autopilot had been recovered with a valve position suggesting it was switched on but with its gyroscope still caged (unable to move freely). Investigation of the pilot’s medical records found he had been diagnosed as diabetic, and discharged from the RAAF in 1941 as medically unfit. Later he had been in hospital with diabetes but told the airline he had had influenza. A Tasmanian ornithologist said he had been shown the remains of a gannet about the time of the crash and had classified its injuries as consistent with having struck a hard, moving, object. A gannet is a large seabird that dives rapidly and steeply towards the sea. However, a judge was unable to decide which, if any of the three theories had been behind the crash. Source: Flight Safety Australia