1954 Cathay Pacific Douglas DC-4 shootdown
| Industry | Airline |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1946 |
| Headquarters | Hong Kong , China (British Hong Kong at the time) |
| Website | www |
The Cathay Pacific Douglas DC-4 shootdown took place on 23 July 1954, when a DC-4/C-54 aircraft operated by Cathay Pacific Airways was attacked and downed by fighters from the Chinese Air Force near Hainan Island. The flight, traveling from Bangkok to Hong Kong, resulted in the deaths of 10 out of the 18 people aboard, including passengers and crew. The flight team consisted of five members, led by British captain Phil Blown. Among the casualties were one member of the flight crew, one cabin attendant, and eight passengers.
Originally constructed as a Douglas C-54 Skymaster for the USAAF, the plane was later converted for commercial use. It initially served with KLM before being purchased by Cathay Pacific. The event is commonly known as the "DC-4 shootdown" to emphasize its status as a civilian aircraft at the time it was attacked.
Aircraft
The aircraft involved bore the registration VR-HEU and was a four-engine propeller-driven Douglas C-54A Skymaster. Built by Douglas Aircraft, it was delivered to the USAAF on 16 May 1944 and remained in military service for under two years. On 19 February 1946, it entered commercial service with KLM, initially flying under KLM West Indies before rejoining KLM’s main fleet in February 1948. Cathay Pacific acquired the aircraft in August 1949.
Flight and attack
VR-HEU departed Bangkok on 22 July 1954 at 20:19 GMT, delayed by an hour due to mechanical problems with its No. 2 engine, on a route destined for Hong Kong.
At approximately 23:40 GMT, while cruising about east of the international air corridor near Hainan Island and 31 minutes away from Hong Kong, two Lavochkin La-11 fighters from the PLAAF's 85th Fighter Regiment appeared behind VR-HEU. Around 23:44 GMT, they opened fire, striking engines 1 and 4 which ignited; the fuel tanks in engine 4 also caught fire.
Captain Phil Blown initiated evasive maneuvers while co-pilot Cedric Carlton advised passengers to shield themselves using blankets. Radio operator Stephen Wong sent multiple mayday transmissions starting at 23:45 GMT, reporting both the fire and loss of altitude. Cathay Pacific engineer G. H. Cattanach helped manage passenger safety during the emergency.
As altitude decreased, VR-HEU’s rudder control was hit and lost at , with speed at , prompting Blown to maneuver to avoid further attacks. At , damage to the right aileron caused uncontrollable rolling. To counter this, Blown shut down engines 1 and 2 and applied full throttle on engine 3. Unable to sustain level flight, he opted to ditch in turbulent open waters with waves reaching and winds blowing at .
The starboard wingtip impacted first, breaking off the right wing between engines 3 and 4. The tail section detached and floated separately about away; meanwhile, the fuselage rested at a 45-degree angle with an open rear section.
Following the ditching, attacking fighters ceased fire and flew off toward Sanya. Gunfire or impact during ditching caused nine fatalities among passengers and crew; nine individuals survived and escaped from the sinking plane. Blown and Carlton exited through a broken starboard window as water began flooding in.
Without life jackets available, survivors drifted until co-pilot Carlton discovered an uninflated raft still secured in its container. To avoid drawing attention from PLAAF fighters, it took twenty minutes to inflate the bright yellow rubber dinghy and get all nine survivors aboard. Some wounded passengers concealed themselves beneath a plastic sunshade stretched over the raft’s edges while Blown and passenger Peter Thacher maintained watch. The fighters did not return thereafter.
Rescue efforts
An Air Vietnam aircraft en route from Hanoi to Hong Kong, having diverted its path following distress signals, identified the sinking plane and a lifeboat near the Hainan shoreline. After maintaining a forty-minute reconnaissance, it continued its journey to Hong Kong. The RAF station in Hong Kong quickly rerouted a Saigon-bound Vickers Valetta military transport and deployed a Short Sunderland flying boat, an Avro York transport, and two de Havilland Hornet fighters from 80 Squadron based at RAF Kai Tak to the location reported by the C-54. Additionally, a fully armed French PB4Y-2 Privateer launched from Tourane (Da Nang), French Indochina, after intercepting the emergency broadcast.
The civilian Manila rescue coordination centre notified the 31st Air Rescue Squadron of the USAF stationed at Clark Air Force Base. Captain Jack T. Woodyard, on duty that day, promptly took off in his Grumman SA-16 Albatross 51-009. A second Albatross followed thirty-five minutes afterward.
The Hornet fighters were the first to arrive, succeeded by the Valetta, Sunderland, York, and Privateer. While the Hornets conducted survivor searches, the French Privateer relayed to the Albatross positioned some distance away: "We have located a dinghy with survivors; appears to be two individuals." Due to differing radio frequencies, British and American aircraft could not establish communication.
Captain Blown piloting the Sunderland deployed green dye in the sea to mark the dinghy's location. The dinghy responded with a smoke flare; however, poor weather conditions prevented the Sunderland from landing. It maintained a two-hour orbit until Woodyard’s Albatross reached the site. The Albatross circled for an additional hour before touching down near Dazhou Island, where it retrieved all survivors and then departed for Hong Kong under Sunderland escort. Contemporary accounts recorded that three survivors were rescued by the Sunderland.
The final passenger saved was Rita Cheung, who suffered severe injuries including fractures and a head wound; she passed away onboard before arrival at Kai Tak. Radio operator Stephen Wong also died, reportedly impaled during the ditching process.
Theories for the attack
Several theories were proposed concerning the cause of the attack:
- VR-HEU was reportedly transporting a Chinese Nationalist ambassador;
- The United States Ambassador to Thailand, "Wild Bill" Donovan", former head of OSS (precursor to the CIA), was expected to travel on a Civil Air Transport flight that same week.
Official statements from Peking asserted that the Cathay Pacific airliner had been mistaken for a Republic of China aircraft on a mission targeting a military installation at Port Yulin on Hainan Island.
Aftermath
On 26 July 1954, during ongoing survivor search missions, two Douglas A-1 Skyraiders from VA-54, operating from an aircraft carrier, shot down two PLAAF La-7s near Hainan Island. It remains uncertain whether these were the same planes involved in shooting down VR-HEU.
This incident intensified diplomatic strains between the People's Republic of China, Britain, and the United States. Two days later, the British Foreign Office, through chargé d'affaires Humphrey Trevelyan, submitted a formal protest to Communist China. US Secretary of State John Foster Dulles condemned the assault and held the Chinese Communist government accountable.
The shootdown likely obstructed PRC’s efforts for admission into the United Nations. Senator H. Alexander Smith referenced this event as "critical" during Senate discussions, while Representative Walter Judd argued it strengthened opposition against PRC membership in the UN.
Three days following the incident, PRC acknowledged responsibility publicly, issued an apology, and compensated Cathay Pacific along with victims affected.
Captain Phil Blown, who commanded VR-HEU during this attack, was celebrated as a hero. He continued his career with Cathay Pacific for several years before retiring to New South Wales, Australia, where he passed away in 2009 at age 96. Nick Rhodes, former Cathay Pacific flight operations director, commended Blown’s courage and unwavering commitment to passenger safety.
See also
Further reading
- Airliner shootdown incidents involving combat aircraft
- Cathay Pacific accidents and incidents
- Aviation accidents and incidents in China
- China–United Kingdom relations
- Accidents and incidents involving the Douglas DC-4
- Mass murder in 1954
- Aviation accidents and incidents in 1954
- 20th-century aircraft shootdown incidents
- July 1954 in Asia
- 1954 murders in China
- Airliner accidents and incidents involving ditching
- 20th-century mass murder in China