Aviation Memorabilia Newsletter

Vic Bentley shares his comments on our 'Featured Video' from NetLetter #1476 -

Thanks for more historic views. The item by Ken Pickford was interesting - C-46 at Granduc mine in northern BC.

After watching the video I had a feeling that something was strange about one part - the aircraft with bent prop blades and the left side supported on packing crates. Not normal operations!

Have another look at these time sequences and see what you think:

• 17:12 Loss-of-control impact site?
• 17:15 C-46 at top of glacier runway being unloaded.
• 17:22 Above view pans to another C-46 that shows damage.
• 17:25 RH prop blade tips bent.
• 17:30 LH engine supported by rig. Prop blades bent.
• 17:32 Damage to antenna under nose? ADF loop antenna cover may be broken. ADF sense antenna masts may be buckled. Compare with 20:34.
• 17:35 Crushed fuel drums in snow. Why show these, unless they were significant to story? Marks in snow from possible impact and towing aircraft out of soft spot?
• 17:37 Crushed fuel drum and possible aircraft cowl in snow (oil cooler scoop?).

Could this be a loss of control on landing, leading to aircraft swerving off runway into soft snow that covered some fuel drums? Or maybe it was a taxiing accident. Both props show tip damage consistent with impact with soft snow. Impact with solid ground results in extensive bending of tips.

The aircraft may have gone nose down into the soft snow after crushing the fuel drums. Ground crew would have to lower the tail. Apparently happened at relatively low speed as aircraft did not flip onto its back.

Imagine the C-46 in 9:10 on rollout drifting off runway to left into soft snow and tipping onto nose. Replacing the props in this environment would be a huge task.

Regards, Vic