Air Inter Flight 2611
| Industry | Airline |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1958 |
| Defunct | 1997 |
| Headquarters | France |
Template:Infobox aircraft occurrence
The Tramoyes crash, involving Air Inter Flight 2611, took place on 12 August 1963. The incident involved a Vickers Viscount 708 operated by Air Inter on a scheduled route from Lille to Nice with a stopover in Lyon. The aircraft crashed early afternoon near Tramoyes, situated in the southwestern part of the Ain region, while making its final approach to Lyon-Bron Airport, approximately 15 kilometers from the site.
Aircraft
The airplane was a Vickers Viscount 708 model manufactured by British firm Vickers-Armstrong in 1954 initially for Air France. It was later acquired by Air Inter on 16 March 1962. Powered by four turboprop engines of the Dart 506 variant, the plane had logged a total of 12,732 flight hours at the time of the accident.
Crew
The flight was commanded by Captain Georges Valencia, born on 1 September 1925, who had accumulated around 7,400 flight hours. He was responsible for managing navigation and engine operations during this flight. His co-pilot was First Officer Guy Cleret-Langavant, born on 21 July 1930, with approximately 5,795 flight hours; he served as the pilot flying on this leg of the journey. The Chief Flight Attendant, Christiane Souleil (born 22 May 1939), sustained severe injuries in the crash and instructed Francis Girard—the first individual to reach the scene—to notify Bron Airport. She later passed away at Lyon's Édouard Herriot Hospital. The second flight attendant was Liliane Perois, born on 31 October 1942.
Accident
During its holding pattern prior to landing, the aircraft encountered an intense thunderstorm. One of its wings struck two trees, then collided with the roof of a farmhouse, and subsequently impacted a reinforced concrete electric pole before crashing into an open field. Twelve individuals lost their lives immediately, and four sustained severe injuries; remarkably, only a single survivor emerged—a five-year-old girl. Overall, the tragedy resulted in sixteen fatalities: eleven of the twelve passengers, all four crew members, and one person on the ground.
Cause
The likely cause of this accident was attributed to the crew being blinded by a powerful lightning strike, which led to loss of control over the aircraft.
Other Air Inter and Vickers Viscount accidents
The Tramoyes disaster marked the first of three fatal crashes involving Air Inter throughout its operational period from 1958 to 1997. Each incident bore similarities to the Noirétable crash on 27 October 1972, where a Vickers Viscount arriving from Lyon-Bron crashed in the Forez region at night during a storm while approaching Clermont-Ferrand, and to the Mount Sainte-Odile catastrophe on 20 January 1992, when an Airbus A320 flying from Lyon-Satolas to Strasbourg crashed near Mont Sainte-Odile under cloudy nighttime conditions.
The British-built medium-range Vickers Viscount, introduced in 1948, experienced a significant number of accidents throughout its service life. Out of 445 units produced, there were 150 accidents or serious incidents reported, with 144 resulting in complete loss of the aircraft (List of accidents and incidents involving the Vickers Viscount).
Notes and references
External links
- Investigation report on the accident available on the BEA website
Template:Aviation accidents and incidents in 1963 Template:Aviation accidents and incidents in France between 1950 and 1999