1946 Sabena Douglas DC-4 crash

On September 18, 1946, a Douglas DC-4 operated by Sabena crashed 35 km southwest of Gander, Newfoundland, killing 27 people and injuring 17 others. Although it was not yet part of Canada at the time, this accident was the 16th deadliest plane crash in Canadian history, the largest civilian plane crash of its time and the first large scale rescue using helicopters.

Crash

The aircraft was on a flight from Melsbroek Air Base in Brussels, Belgium, to LaGuardia Airport in New York City, United States, for a diamond exposition. Reportedly, the pilot attempted to carry out a visual approach in bad weather to Gander International Airport for a stopover by trying to descend below the clouds. Since the cloud base was about ground level, the plane crashed into trees in a dense wooded area, broke up and caught fire 35 km from the airport at 2:42 local time. Some of the passengers were reportedly thrown into trees. Unharmed survivors rescued injured victims from the burning wreckage, saving lives.

The rescue was initiated by the United States Coast Guard after air traffic control notified them that they had lost radio contact with the aircraft, and had assured them the plane had not landed elsewhere. Reconnaissance flights were first conducted with a Consolidated PBY Catalina to locate the aircraft. A landing Trans World Airlines aircraft was the first to report the location of the crash site. The Coast Guard flew over the site, confirmed it was the missing Sabena aircraft, and confirmed that there were survivors. The first medical supplies were parachuted over the scene.

A United States Army medical team was deployed to Dead Wolf Pond, a small lake five miles from the crash site. From there, the team traveled on a small boat across a river and then on foot to the crash site. The physician, Dr. Martin, determined that this route could not be carried out with the injured, and the United States Coast Guard decided to launch a helicopter operation. The helicopters, a Sikorsky HNS-1 and a Sikorsky HOS-1, were disassembled and flown in by United States Air Force Douglas C-54 Skymaster aircraft from the Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, and the Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. At Gander International Airport, the helicopters were assembled and extensively tested, all within 48 hours of the crash.

Meanwhile, PBYs were dropping equipment over the crash site, including tents, medical supplies, and wooden beams. The wooden beams were used to build platforms on the peat for the tents and as landing pads for the helicopters.

Two days after the crash on September 20, helicopters landed on newly constructed landing pads at the crash site. The Coast Guard also had Consolidated PBY Catalina seaplanes on standby at Gander Lake. The injured were transferred by helicopters to a lifeboat, which then brought them to the fuselage of the aircraft, from where they could be flown to the Gander hospital for treatment. Five people initially survived the crash, but later died a day before rescue operations. Three others succumbed to their injuries throughout the night.