| Date/Time |
Person |
Location |
Aircraft |
Details |
Notes |
| Aug 31, 1940 |
Ernest Lundeen
62, Minnesota U.S. Senator |
Near Lovettsville, Virginia |
Pennsylvania Central Airlines
Douglas DC-3
NC21789
cn:2188 |
Flying through a thunderstorm in turbulence the plane nosed over and plunged to earth. Lightning strike disabled crew and caused loss of control. All 25 aboard killed. |
details in
database |
| Jan 5, 1941 |
Amy Johnson
37, pioneer woman aviator |
Oxford, England |
Airspeed AS10 Oxford Mk II |
While ferrying an aircraft for the RAF from Prestwick to Kidington, she became lost in poor weather and parachuted into the Thames River and drowned. Her body was never recovered. 1 killed. |
|
Feb 20, 1941
20:00 |
Sir Fredrick Grant Banting
49, Canadian co-discoverer of insulin |
Near Gander, Newfoundland |
Lockheed Hudson MK III bomber
T9449 |
Crashed into trees at the side of a lake, 10 miles out of Gander en route to England. Double engine failure. Banting died of his injuries a few days later. Three out of 4 aboard killed. |
|
Feb 26, 1941
11:50 |
William Byron
45, Maryland U.S. Rep. |
Jonesboro, Georgia
|
Eastern Airlines
Douglas DC-3
NC28394
3204 |
The aircraft crashed into a hill in pine woods, near Chandler Field, while attempting to make an instrument landing approach in rain and fog. Pilot error. 9 of 16 aboard killed. |
details in
database |
Dec 11, 1941
|
John Gillespie Magee Jr.
19, American pilot and poet |
Roxholm, England
|
VZ-H Spitfire V |
Magee was killed when his VZ-H Spitfire V collided with an Oxford Trainer from Cranwell Airfield during World War II. 1 killed. |
|
Jan 16, 1942
19:23 |
Carole Lombard
33, movie actress
real name Alice Jane Peters |
Near Las Vegas, Nevada |
Trans Con. & Western Airways
Flight 3
Douglas DC-3
NC1946 cn:3295 |
Flight 3, crashed into Mt. Potosi. Lombard was returning from a war bond promotion. The aircraft drifted off course for reasons unknown. All 22 aboard killed including Lombard's mother and press agent. |
details in
database |
Feb 8, 1942
|
Dr. Fritz Todt
50, chief designer of the German autobahn. Third Reich minister for armaments and munitions. |
Rastenburg, Germany |
Junkers 52 |
The aircraft crashed after exploding shortly after taking off. |
|
| Aug 21, 1942 |
Baron Carl-August von Gablenz
48, founder of Lufthansa Airlines |
Mühlberg/Elbe, Germany |
Siebel Si 204 |
von Gablenz's plane which he was piloting, crashed after experiencing mechanical failure. 2 killed. |
|
Aug 25, 1942
13:42 |
George Edmund
39, the Duke of Kent |
Near Dunbeath, Scotland |
Short Sunderland
DQ-M
cn:W4026 |
The plane crashed while on a flight to Iceland during WWII. The aircraft was part of the 228th Squadron RAF. The plane hit high ground at Eagle Rock in the Scottish Highlands in poor visibility. Possible navigation error but exact cause unknown. All 14 aboard killed. |
|
| Oct 23, 1942 |
Ralph Rainger
41, composer and song writer |
Palm Springs, California |
Douglas DC-3
NC16017
cn:1555 |
Midair collision with an Army B-34 bomber. The bomber pilot attempted to draw attention to his friend the co-pilot in the airliner and struck the tail of the airliner. All 12 aboard the airliner killed. The bomber landed safely. |
|
| Jan 15, 1943 |
Eric Mowbray Knight
46, U.S. novelist |
Paramaribo, Dutch Guiana |
Douglas C-54 |
Crashed into a jungle while on a secret mission during a WW II military flight on the way to the Casablanca Conference. All 35 aboard killed. |
|
| Feb 22, 1943 |
Ben Robertson
U.S. novelist
Tamara Drasin
34, actress, singer |
Lisbon, Portugal |
Pan Am
Boeing 314
NC18603
cn:1990 |
The flying boat was attempting to land when the left wing hit the water. Actress Jane Froman seriously injured. 25 of 39 aboard killed. |
details in
database |
| Apr 18, 1943 |
Admiral Isorok Yamamoto
42, Japanese naval commander |
Kahili, Bougainville
Solomon Islands |
Mitsubishi G4M Transport |
Shot down by U.S. fighters. The allies knew where his plane would be after the Japanese code was broken. |
|
| Jun 1, 1943 |
Leslie Howard
42, movie actor |
Off the coast of France |
British Overseas Airways
Douglas DC-3
G-AGBB
cn:1590 |
Shot down by German military aircraft. All 17 aboard killed. |
|
| Jun 2, 1943 |
Nile Clark Kinnick Jr.
24, 1939 Heisman trophy winner at the University of Iowa |
Over the Gulf of Paria in the Caribbean Sea |
Navy fighter |
Rather than land on a carrier and risk a fire, Kinnick ditched his fighter plane into the Caribbean Sea during a training flight after developing an oil leak. Kinnick and the aircraft were never found. |
|
| Jul 4, 1943 |
Wladyslaw Sikorski
62, Prime Minister of Poland in exile |
Off Gibraltar |
B24C Liberator
A-L-523 |
Crashed into the Mediterranean Sea shortly after takeoff while on a flight to London. 12 of 13 aboard killed. |
details in
database |
| Jul 21, 1943 |
Charles Paddock
43, Olympic track star, Marine Captain, depicted in the film Chariots of Fire |
Near Sitka, Alaska |
|
Killed in the line of duty. The Navy plane he was flying in crashed near Sitka killing all 6 aboard. |
|
Aug 31, 1943
|
Leonard Supulski
23, Football player for the Philidephia Eagles |
Kearny, Nebraska |
B-17 Flying Fortress
42-5451 |
Killed on a routine Army Air Corps training flight. 8 killed. |
|
Sep 21, 1943
|
John William Ditter
55, Pennsylvania U.S. Rep. |
Colombia, Pennsylvania |
Military plane Single engine |
Ditter was flying on a Navy plane. The crew dropped flares in heavy rain but ultimately crashed and burned. 2 killed. |
|
| Oct 7, 1943 |
Prince Christoph Ernst of Hesse-Casse
42 |
Forli, Itay |
|
Killed in an crash over the Italian Apennine mountains while on active duty. |
|
| Nov 27, 1943 |
Edward O'Hare
29, decorated war hero. |
Pacific Ocean |
F6F Hellcat |
His plane was shot down in combat. Namesake of Chicago O'hare Airport |
|
| Apr 12, 1944 |
Tommy Hitchcock Jr.
44, champion polo player |
Near Salisbury, England |
P-51Mustang |
Crashed while flying for the Air Force during World War II. Hitchcock was unable to pull out of a dive as he conducted tests. |
|
| Jul 31, 1944 |
Antoine de Saint- Exupery
44, French writer |
Mediterranean off Marseille, France |
Lockheed P-38 Lightning |
Lost over the Mediterranean during a World War II mission for the U.S. Air Force. Probably due to mechanical failure. 1 killed. |
|
Aug 12, 1944
|
Joseph P. Kennedy
29, brother of President John F. Kennedy |
Blythgurgh, England |
Consolidated PB4Y-1
32271 |
Intending to bail out to leave another aircraft to guide a plane via remote control into a German sub pen, the plane blew up before he could exit. 2 killed. |
details in
database |
| Dec 15, 1944 |
Glenn Miller
40, band leader and musician |
Over the English Channel |
UC-64A Noorduyn Norseman |
Disappeared over the English Channel. Most likely accidentally hit by bombs jettisoned by RAF bombers returning from an unsuccessful raid. 2 killed. |
details in
database |
| Jan 2, 1945 |
Sir Bertram Ramsey
62, British Admiral |
Toussus le Noble, France |
Lockheed Hudson |
Dived into the ground and crashed shortly after taking off. |
|
| Mar 17, 1945 |
Robert Hutchins
19 "Wheezer" of the Little Rascals |
Merced, California |
B-26 Marauder |
Hutchins crashed his plane while attempting to land during a trainin exercise. |
|
| Aug 6, 1945 |
Maj. Richard Bong
25, WW II Ace |
Burbank, California |
P-80 jet fighter |
Crashed while testing the P-80 jet fighter. Highest scoring ace in American history with 40 victories. |
|
Jan 26, 1947
15:30 |
Grace Moore
48, singer
Prince Gustav Adolf
41, Swedish crown prince |
Copenhagen, Denmark |
KLM
Douglas C-47
PH-TCR
cn:25479 |
Crashed during takeoff. Failure to remove the elevator locking pins during takeoff. All 22 aboard killed. |
details in
database
|
Aug 23, 1947
|
Roy Chadwick
54, English aircraft designer |
Lake District, England |
Avro 688 Tudor II |
Avro's chief designer, Chadwick was killed when the Avro Tudor II prototype he was testing crashed on takeoff. Incorrectly installed aileron controls. |
|
| Oct 24, 1947 |
Jeff Burkett
rookie punter for the Chicago Cardinals football team |
Bryce Canyon, Utah |
United Airlines
Flight 608
Douglas DC-6
NC37510
cn:42875/17
|
A design flaw allowed vented gasoline to be drawn into the heater air intake scoop. The plane exploded and crashed. Burkett stayed behind because of an emergency appendectomy and was returning to his team in Chicago. All 53 aboard killed. |
|
| Oct 28, 1947 |
Earl Snell
52, Governor of Oregon |
Near Lakeview, Oregon |
Beechcraft Bonanza |
Crashed in the Fremont Naional Forest, near Dog Lake, in a private plane. All 4 aboard killed including the state's Attorney General and Senate President. |
|
Jun 17, 1948
01:41 |
Earl Carroll
55, U.S. theatrical impresario
Berryl Wallace
actress |
Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania |
United Air Lines
Flight 624
Douglas DC-6
NC37506
cn: 42871 |
Flight 624 crashed after an in-flight fire in the cargo hold. Carbon dioxide extinguishers leaked into the cockpit incapacitating the crew. All 43 aboard killed. |
details in
database |
Sep 25, 1948
15:07 |
Joe Lynam
31, pro wrestler |
Bend, Oregon |
Navy surplus aircraft
NC62389 |
The plane struck Horse Ridge, 500 feet from the summit, just after taking off from Bend in rain and fog. |
|
Apr 20, 1949
|
Robert Coffey Jr.
31,Pennsylvania U.S. Rep. |
Albuquerque, New Mexico |
P-80 Shooting Star Jet Fighter |
Crashed on takeoff while on a cross country proficiency flight. |
|
| May 13, 1949 |
Kathleen Kennedy Cavendish
28, sister of President John Kennedy |
Mount Coron, France |
Skyways
de Havilland Dove 1
G-AJOU
cn:N 04058 |
Crashed in a storm. All 10 aboard killed. |
|
May 4, 1949
17:04 |
Torino soccer team |
Superga, Italy |
Avio Linee Italiane
Fiat G212CP
I-ELCE
cn:5 |
The left wing struck a wall while trying to land in rain, low visibility and thunderstorms. All 31 aboard killed. |
details in
database |
Oct 1, 1949
21:00 |
Buddy Clark
37, singer |
Los Angeles, California |
Twin engine Cessna
T-50 |
The aircraft ran out of gas and clipped trees and power lines as it crash landed onto Beverly Boulevard. Clark was the only one of 5 aboard killed when he was thrown from the plane. |
|
Oct 28, 1949
|
Marcel Cerdan
33, French boxing champion
Ginette Neveu
30, French violinist |
San Miguel Island, Azores |
Air France
Lockheed Constellation
F-BAZN sn 2546 |
Flew into a mountain after two failed attempts at landing at the Azores. Cerdan, former middleweight champion, was en route to fight Jake LaMotta in New York. All 48 aboard killed. Ironically, Jake LaMotta's son was killed in the Swissair crash in 1998. |
details in
database |
Nov 1, 1949
|
George Bates
58, Massachusetts U.S. Rep.
Michael Kennedy
52, New York U.S. Rep.
Helen Hokinson
46, cartoonist for the New Yorker
|
Arlington, Virginia |
Eastern Air Lines
Flight 537
Douglas C-54B
N555LD
cn:18365 |
Midair collision with a U.S. Air Force P-38 fighter. Fighter pilot survived, tried for causing accident and cleared. All 56 aboard killed. |
details in
database |