1959 Gatwick Turkish Airlines Viscount crash

Turkish Airlines

Industry	Airline
Founded	1933
Headquarters	Ankara , Turkey
Products	Air transport services

Template:Infobox aircraft occurrence

On 17 February 1959, a Turkish Airlines Vickers Viscount Type 793 (registration TC-SEV) operating an international charter flight from Ankara's Esenboğa International Airport to London Heathrow was redirected to London Gatwick Airport because of dense fog. The flight carried the Turkish prime minister along with several government officials. During its final approach amid thick fog, the aircraft crashed into woodland approximately three miles (4.8 km) from the Gatwick runway threshold. The accident resulted in the deaths of five crew members and nine passengers. Among the ten survivors was the prime minister.

Flight

Turkish Prime Minister Adnan Menderes was traveling with a delegation to London to finalize the London Agreement concerning Cyprus alongside British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan and Greek Prime Minister Constantine Karamanlis. This treaty granted the three nations authority to intervene if peace was disrupted by any involved party.

The special flight originated from Ankara's Esenboğa International Airport, scheduled for London Heathrow with planned stops at Istanbul's Atatürk International Airport and Rome's Ciampino Airport. After departing Rome at 13:02 hrs, the aircraft contacted London Airways at 15:56 hrs near Abbeville, shortly before exiting French airspace. Air traffic control cleared TC-SEV to proceed to the Epsom Radio Range station, which served as a holding fix for London Airport. At 16:21 hrs over Epsom, London Airport authorities instructed the captain to divert to Gatwick due to poor visibility conditions at Heathrow. Template:Location map+

Accident

At 16:27 hrs, TC-SEV departed Epsom, maintaining a cruising altitude of 6,000 feet (1,800 m), en route to Mayfield, East Sussex, which served as the holding point for Gatwick Airport. The airport's approach control notified the pilot that radar guidance would be provided for an ILS approach to the easterly Runway 08R.

The most recent weather observations at Gatwick Airport indicated calm surface winds, visibility of approximately 1,800 yards (1,600 m), mist conditions, absence of low cloud cover, and shallow patches of ground fog ranging from 1 foot (0.30 m) to 5 feet (1.5 m) in depth.

The pilot received a weather update stating surface wind calm, visibility one point one nautical miles, mist, three oktas at eight hundred feet, QFE one zero three six, which was acknowledged.

At 16:34 hrs, instructions were given to descend to a holding altitude of 4,000 feet (1,200 m) upon reaching the Mayfield NDB, with a heading of 280 degrees, followed by a further descent to 2,000 feet (610 m).

Once aligned with the ILS approach path, TC-SEV slightly deviated beyond the centre line. When approximately 5 nautical miles (9.3 km) from the runway touchdown point, the crew confirmed their ability to continue on the ILS. At 16:38 hrs, the captain was asked to switch to the tower frequency and acknowledged this request. This marked the final communication from the aircraft.

Radar tracking showed the aircraft along the approach centre line until it vanished roughly 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) from the runway threshold. The absence of radio responses led to the presumption of a crash.

The plane collided with treetops at an altitude of 390 feet (120 m) above mean sea level near Jordan's Wood, adjacent to the Newdigate-Rusper road. Flying parallel to Runway 08R’s approach path at Gatwick, it lost its wings and engines during a descent angled about six degrees below horizontal over a distance of roughly 300 yards (270 m) through woodland. The wheels contacted the ground briefly before the main wreckage came to rest upside down approximately 100 yards (91 m) further along with trees embedded in its crushed fuselage. A fire erupted shortly thereafter. The aft fuselage section settled upside down but remained unaffected by flames. An explosion followed within the main fuselage shortly after.

The crash site was situated about 2.8 nautical miles (5.2 km) from the runway threshold and approximately 550 feet (170 m) north of the approach centre line.

This incident marked Turkish Airlines' first involvement in an air disaster.

Rescue operations

Following notification from Gatwick Airport, local fire and rescue teams were dispatched promptly after confirmation that the aircraft had crashed within the area where it disappeared from radar.

Peter Weller, working as a gardener at Newdigate Chaffold farm, along with two colleagues witnessed the accident. He sent one friend by bicycle to alert authorities at a nearby police station while he and another companion hurried to assist at the crash site. Shortly after 17:00 hrs, Margaret Bailey—a trained nurse—and her husband Tony arrived at the scene.

Despite dense fog conditions, three units from Surrey Fire Brigade managed to extinguish the blaze effectively.

Survival of the Turkish Prime Minister

File:Turkish Disaster Gatwick 1959.jpg

Memorial dedicated to the victims within the Turkish Airforce section at Brookwood Cemetery

Turkish Prime Minister Adnan Menderes, who occupied a left-side window seat in the rear passenger area, emerged from the crash with only minor facial abrasions. He was found hanging upside down, his foot trapped beneath the floor. Assistance came from Rıfat Kadızade, who freed Menderes’s foot and released his seatbelt. Subsequently, Kadızade and Şefik Fenmen helped extract him from the wreckage. Another survivor, Melih Esenbel, later joined them outside.

While Tony Bailey was occupied assisting other injured passengers, his wife transported Menderes along with two additional survivors approximately 200 yards (180 m) to her farmhouse, where she administered first aid. About ninety minutes later, Menderes was admitted to The London Clinic. During his hospital stay, he signed the London Agreement on 19 February 1959. He made his return to Turkey on 26 February 1959, greeted by his political opponent İsmet İnönü and a large crowd.

Other injured individuals received treatment at medical facilities in East Grinstead, Redhill, and Dorking. The deceased were repatriated to Turkey and interred on 22 February 1959. A commemorative monument honoring the victims stands in the Turkish Airforce section at Brookwood Cemetery in Surrey.

Investigation into the Crash

The investigation established the following facts: Template:Blockquote

The inquiry concluded: Template:Blockquote

A post-event analysis of probable weather conditions along the final approach to Gatwick—from approximately 10 miles (16 km) west of the runway threshold—indicated calm or light westerly surface winds. Fog extensively covered the ground from the western boundary of this area to roughly 2.5 miles (4.0 km)-3 miles (4.8 km) short of Runway 09’s threshold. The fog layer’s altitude ranged between 650 feet (200 m) and 700 feet (210 m), with visibility inside varying from about 30 yards (27 m) up to 200 yards (180 m), occasionally interrupted by brief isolated clearings. East of this fog bank toward Gatwick, conditions included mist and haze, offering visibility between 1,500 yards (1,400 m) and 2,000 yards (1,800 m), accompanied by little or no low cloud cover.

Aircraft

File:THY Vickers Viscount TC-SEV.jpg

Vickers Viscount featuring THY livery for a film production.

The airplane involved was a Vickers Viscount Type 793, equipped with four Rolls-Royce Dart 510 turboprop engines, manufactured by Vickers-Armstrongs (Aircraft) Ltd and completed in 1958, bearing the serial number 429.

On 25 July 1958, the United Kingdom issued a Certificate of Airworthiness valid for one year. Concurrently, the Turkish Ministry of Communications' Civil Aviation Department granted a Certificate of Validation for the same duration. The aircraft was officially registered under Turkish Airlines Incorporated.

The airframe had accumulated a total of 548 flight hours, while each engine had operated for roughly 615 hours since production. After reviewing all pertinent records and logbooks within Turkey, Turkish authorities confirmed that maintenance procedures had been correctly implemented. Translated excerpts from these documents revealed no indication of defects that could have contributed to the incident. It was also observed that no inspections had been conducted on the aircraft’s ILS equipment.

At the time of landing, the aircraft's weight was within the authorized maximum limits. Although trim settings could not be verified, there was no evidence suggesting they were outside prescribed parameters.

Crew and passengers

The flight crew comprised eight members: three pilots, one navigator, one mechanic, and three cabin attendants. Tragically, five crew members lost their lives.

• Münir Ozbek, Captain (38) – (pilot in command) – deceased
• Lütfi Biberoglu, Captain (35) – (co-pilot) – deceased
• Sabri Kazmaoglu, Captain (35) – (reserve pilot) – deceased
• Gündüz Tezel, Captain (42) – (navigator) – deceased
• Türkay Erkay – (steward) – seriously wounded
• Gönül Uygur – (stewardess) – deceased
• Yurdanur Yelkovan – (stewardess) – seriously wounded
• Kemal Itık – (additional mechanic) – unharmed

Official records indicate sixteen passengers were aboard, with nine fatalities resulting from the accident. However, media reports listed seventeen passengers in total.

• Adnan Menderes (Prime Minister) – uninjured
• Server Somuncuoğlu (Minister of Press, Media and Tourism) – deceased
• Muzaffer Ersü (Private Secretary to Prime Minister) – deceased
• Şefik Fenmen (Deputy Private Secretary to Prime Minister) – minor injuries
• Melih Esenbel (Secretary General of Foreign Ministry) – minor injuries
• İlhan Savut (Head of 2nd Department, Foreign Ministry) – deceased
• Mehmet Ali Görmüş (Private Secretary to Press, Media and Tourism Minister) – deceased
• Sedat Görmüş (Secretary to Foreign Minister) – deceased
• Güner Türkmen (Secretary to Foreign Minister) – deceased
• Arif Demirer (Deputy representing Afyonkarahisar) – injured
• Emin Kalafat (Deputy representing Çanakkale) – injured
• Kemal Zeytinoğlu (Deputy representing Eskişehir, former Public Works Minister) – deceased
• Rıfat Kadıoğlu (Deputy representing Sakarya) – injured
• Abdullah Parla (General Manager of Turkish Airlines) – deceased
• Şerif Arzık (General Manager of Anadolu News Agency) – deceased
• Burhan Tan (Photojournalist for Newspaper Akşam) – deceased
• Kazım Nefes (Police bodyguard) – injured

TC-SEV replica

A Viscount 794D, bearing manufacturer serial number 430 and registered as TC-SEL, was refurbished by Turkish Airlines. This aircraft previously served as a VIP transport for the Turkish Air Force until its retirement in 1990. Subsequently, the plane’s call sign was updated to TC-SEV, and it was repainted with the original red-and-white striped livery reminiscent of pajamas. The restored airframe is now exhibited at the Military Aviation Museum located in Yeşilköy, Istanbul.

Film and television

The Gatwick air disaster was documented in a television film that featured the Viscount 794D replica.

Additionally, the Turkish ATV channel aired a historical romantic drama titled Hatırla Sevgili (Remember Darling), which portrays the accident and the survival of Menderes, incorporating scenes with the replica aircraft.

External links

• Plane crash info