Iberia Flight 062

Iberia Flight 062

Company type	Scheduled passenger flight
Industry	Aviation
Founded	4 November 1967 (date of accident)
Fate	Crashed on 4 November 1967
Headquarters	Spain / United Kingdom
Products	Passenger air transport

Iberia Flight 062 involved a twin-engine Sud Aviation Caravelle bearing the registration EC-BDD, which was conducting a scheduled journey from Málaga Airport, Spain, to London Heathrow Airport. On the evening of 4 November 1967, while on final approach to Heathrow, the aircraft descended well below its designated altitude and collided with the southern face of Blackdown Hill, causing the loss of all 37 individuals on board.

Crash sequence

The incident took place at approximately 10:02 pm, roughly five and a half minutes after the crew received clearance to descend from FL110 (11,000 ft) down to FL60 (6,000 ft). Descending gradually, the Caravelle first struck trees near Black Down House, then broke through a hedge before crossing a field where it caused the immediate death of 65 sheep and seriously injured an additional 23. The aircraft subsequently demolished a garage and inflicted damage upon the roof of Upper Black Down House.

Fires ignited on the hillside due to leaking aviation fuel. Wreckage was dispersed over an area spanning approximately along the aircraft’s trajectory.

Investigation

The inquiry was unable to establish why the plane descended beneath its assigned flight level. Analysis of air traffic control audio and the cockpit voice recorder recovered from the wreckage revealed no anomalies. The investigation found no signs of mechanical failure or defects in the airframe, engines, or workmanship prior to impact.

Considerable attention was given to the possibility that the flight crew misinterpreted their "three-pointer" altimeters, which included a cross-hatch warning pattern below 10,000 feet. The official report stated:

"The aircraft maintained a steady descent over 13½ minutes with continuously moving pointers, increasing the likelihood of misreading. The cross-hatching became visible from approximately 26,666 ft and remained displayed for about 9½ minutes before descending past FL60, though its effectiveness as a warning at that stage is unclear.

"Misreading 6,000 ft as 16,000 ft is possible if the 10,000 ft pointer is disregarded. However, a transmission to ATC reporting passing FL145 indicates that the crew were aware they were below 16,000 ft at that time."

Victims

Among those who perished was British actress June Thorburn, who was five months pregnant at the time.

A communal grave and memorial dedicated to 19 victims is situated approximately 28 km north of the crash location at Brookwood Cemetery in Surrey.

Nationality	Number of Fatalities
United Kingdom	25
Spain	9 (including seven crew members)
United States	2
Australia	1

See also

• United Air Lines Flight 389 – another case involving suspected altimeter misinterpretation

Further reading

• Sussex Constabulary (1967). Report on Air Disaster at Blackdown Hill, Sussex, 4 November 1967 [by] Supt G. Dinley [West Sussex Record Office].

External links

• Official accident report concerning Caravelle SE-210 EC-BDD crash near Fernhurst, Sussex, dated 4 November 1967
• Newsreel footage showing crash wreckage from British Pathé
• Fernhurst Society page detailing the crash including police map and newsreel video
• Flight International, 30 August 1970 – summary of Board of Trade crash report (PDF)
• Photograph of Caravelle EC-BDD taken two months prior to accident
• The Fernhurst Air Disaster: Half a Century Later
• UK National Archives catalog related to the accident