1952 Mount Gannett C-124 crash
{{Short description|1952 aviation accident in Alaska, United States}}
{{Infobox aircraft occurrence
|name = 1952 Mount Gannett C-124 crash
|occurrence_type = Accident
|date = {{Start date|1952|11|22}}
|summary = Controlled flight into mountainous terrain during approach in bad weather
|site = Colony Glacier, Mount Gannett, Alaska, United States
|passengers = 41
|crew = 11
|fatalities = 52
|survivors = 0
|aircraft_type = Douglas C-124A-DL Globemaster II
|image = Douglas C-124A-DL Globemaster II 50-1256.jpg
|caption = A Douglas C-124 Globemaster II similar to the accident aircraft
|operator = United States Air Force
|tail_number = 51-0107
|origin = McChord Air Force Base, Washington
|destination = Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska
}}
The 1952 Mount Gannett C-124 crash was an accident in which a Douglas C-124 Globemaster II military transport aircraft of the United States Air Force crashed into Mount Gannett, a peak in the Chugach Mountains in the American state of Alaska, on November 22, 1952. All of the 52 men on board were killed. Weather onditions at the time of the crash made search and recovery impossible. Six days after the crash, a survey of the site revealed eight feet of new snow and an avalanche had covered the crash site.{{cite web|accessdate=June 2, 2025|url=https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2020/07/28/cold-war-plane-crash-remains-alaska/|date=July 28, 2020 |first=Grace |last=Palmer
|title=Remains of Cold War Plane Crash Emerging From Rapidly Melting Alaska Glacier |work=State of the Planet|publisher=Columbia Climate School, Columbia University}}
In 2012, the debris field was identified miles from the crash site. Since the discovery, recovery efforts had continued annually. As of June 2025, 49 of the 52 persons had been identified.{{cite web|accessdate=June 30, 2025|url=https://www.dvidshub.net/image/9132400/operation-colony-glacier-2025 |title=Operation Colony Glacier 2025 [Image 10 of 18]
|first=SrA Quatasia |last=Carter|publisher=United States Air Force|via=DVIDS|quote=As of June 2025, 49 of the 52 service members have been identified.}}
Accident
The C-124 departed McChord Air Base in Washington state en route to Elmendorf Air Force Base near Anchorage, Alaska, with a crew of 11 and 41 Army and Air Force men. The flight was recorded as passing Middleton Island in the Gulf of Alaska. Around 4pm, a distress call was received by the pilot of a Northwest Orient Airlines passenger aircraft. The reception was very poor, but the Northwest captain made out the sentence: "As long as we have to land, we might as well land here."{{cite news|url=https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/article/aircraft-debris-found-glacier-12-miles-1952-crash-site/2012/06/27/|title=Aircraft debris found on glacier 12 miles from 1952 crash site |first1=Casey |last1=Grove |first2=Mike |last2=Dunham |date= June 27, 2012 |accessdate=June 19, 2014|work=Anchorage Daily News}} Weather near Elmendorf at the time was severe with heavy clouds, dense fog, and swirling snow which obscured visibility. The C-124 was flying without visual references, using just altitude, a radio beacon, and a stopwatch. There was no further communication from the C-124 and it failed to arrive at Elmendorf as scheduled.
The severe weather continued for three days, so searching was only able to begin on November 25. Thirty-two military aircraft searched the surrounding mountains and four Coast Guard vessels searched Prince William Sound. The wreckage of the aircraft was found on November 28, 1952, on the south side of Mount Gannett by Terris Moore from the Fairbanks Civil Air Patrol and Lieutenant Thomas Sullivan from the 10th Air Rescue Squadron. The pair spotted the tail section of the C-124 sticking out of the snow at an elevation of about {{convert|8,100|ft|-2}}, close to the summit of Mount Gannett. Sullivan and Moore recorded the location as being on the Surprise Glacier, which flows south and empties into Harriman Fjord. However, the 2012 rediscovery of the remains of the aircraft at the foot of Colony Glacier, where it enters Lake George, suggests that the actual crash location was a little further north on the Mount Gannett ice field, sufficient for the debris to be carried {{convert|12|miles|km}} down the north-flowing Colony Glacier over the subsequent 60 years.
Moore, who was a mountaineer and pilot as well as president of the University of Alaska, told journalists the C-124 "obviously was flying at full speed" and appeared to have slid down the cliffs of Mount Gannett and exploded. Wreckage was spread across several acres of the glacier. Moore surmised that the pilot had narrowly missed other Chugach Range peaks during his approach. "From this I conclude he was on instrument, flying blind, and probably crashed without any warning whatsoever to him directly into the southerly face of Mt. Gannett."
Moore reported finding blood on a blanket and noted the "sickly-sweet smell of death" at the site. It seemed clear that there were no survivors. Sullivan noted that recovery of remains would be very difficult as the glacier was already covered by fresh snow eight feet deep. Near the remains of the aircraft, drifted snow was piled up to hundreds of feet. Apparently, the crash had also triggered avalanches that had further buried the remains.{{cite news|url=https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/article/search-persists-remnants-1952-glacier-plane-crash/2013/07/07/|title=Search persists for remnants of 1952 glacier plane crash |first1=Lisa |last1=Demer |date= July 6, 2013 |accessdate=June 19, 2014|work=Anchorage Daily News}} Because of the difficult conditions, the recovery effort was terminated after a week and the victims' families were told they would have no remains to bury.{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crash-site-of-american-military-plane-found-in-melting-glacier-more-than-60-years-on-9549356.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crash-site-of-american-military-plane-found-in-melting-glacier-more-than-60-years-on-9549356.html |archive-date=2022-05-01 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Crash site of American military plane found in melting glacier more than 60 years on |first=David |last=Usborne |date=June 19, 2014 |accessdate=June 19, 2014|periodical=The Independent}}{{cbignore}} The debris was then covered by snow and ice, and was lost for the next 60 years.
At the time, this was only the second fatal accident for the C-124, and was by far the worst. However, the following year saw even more deadly crashes at Moses Lake, Washington, and Tachikawa, Japan, Overall, this was the fourth-worst accident involving a Douglas C-124.
Discovery of remains
File:Route map of debris field - 1952 Globemaster crash - Mount Gannett to Colony Glacier.png
On June 9, 2012, the crew of an Alaska Army National Guard helicopter on a training mission noticed a large yellow survival raft on the surface of the Colony Glacier above Inner Lake George.{{cite news| work=American Forces Press Service |url=http://www.pacom.mil/Media/News/News-Article-View/Article/564263/dod-recovers-remains-of-17-from-1952-aircraft-crash-in-alaska/|title=DOD Recovers Remains of 17 From 1952 Aircraft Crash in Alaska |date=June 18, 2014 |accessdate=June 19, 2014}} The site was nearly 14 miles from the 1952 crash location. The National Guard sent a team on foot to examine the site and they retrieved items that were identified as being from the crashed C-124. On June 13, 2012, Deputy Chief Rick Stone, J-2 Intelligence Directorate at the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, was assigned to investigate the wreckage.
On June 28, 2012, the US military announced the discovery of the wreckage.{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-xpm-2012-jun-28-la-na-nn-plane-glacier-alaska-06282012-story.html |last=Nelson |first=Laura J. |title=After 60 years, Alaska glacier gives up wreckage from 1952 crash| work=Los Angeles Times |date=June 28, 2012| access-date=June 19, 2014 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230127082004/https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-xpm-2012-jun-28-la-na-nn-plane-glacier-alaska-06282012-story.html|archive-date=January 27, 2023}}{{cite news |url=http://www.ktuu.com/news/news/military-identifies-17-killed-in-1952-alaska-crash/26559466 |publisher=KTUU |title=Military Identifies 17 Killed in 1952 Alaska Crash |accessdate=June 19, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140722180747/http://www.ktuu.com/news/news/military-identifies-17-killed-in-1952-alaska-crash/26559466 |archive-date=2014-07-22 |url-status=dead }}{{cite news| url=https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/article/military-ids-remains-17-service-members-killed-1952-plane-crash-near-colony-glacier/2014/06/19/|work=Anchorage Daily News |title=Military IDs remains of 17 service members killed in 1952 plane crash near Colony Glacier |date=July 18, 2014 |accessdate=June 19, 2014}}
Recovery operations
After the discovery of the crash wreckage, Operation Colony Glacier was established for the recovery of remains and personal effects.{{cite web|accessdate=June 28, 2025 |url=https://portal.nfda.org/Education/Calendar-of-Events/Quick-Register-Meeting-Home-Page?meetingid=%7BE9343916-1316-F011-998A-000D3A1867B5%7D |title=Webinar: Colony Glacier Operations: An Inside Look|date=June 25, 2025|publisher=National Funeral Directors Association}}
The initial recovery operation taken over by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, whose primary role is to search for US military personnel missing overseas. On June 18, 2014, after two seasons of operations on the glacier, the Department of Defense announced that the remains of 17 of the victims had been identified and would be returned to their families for burial. By 2019, the Department of Defense had increased the number of sets of remains identified to 40.{{cite news| url=https://www.adn.com/opinions/2019/06/14/operation-colony-glacier-a-feel-good-story-or-something-greater/|work=Anchorage Daily News |title=Operation Colony Glacier: A feel-good story or something greater? |date=June 14, 2019 |accessdate=May 7, 2020}}At the conclusion of the 2022 effort, ten years after recovery efforts began, remains of 41 service members had been retrieved and identified.
This operation has continued on an annual basis, led by Alaskan Command. The annual effort occurs during a small time window each summer.{{cite web|accessdate=June 28, 2025|url=https://www.defense.gov/News/Feature-Stories/Story/Article/3448318/sacred-search-operation-colony-glacier/
|title=Sacred Search: Operation Colony Glacier|date=July 10, 2023
|work=DOD New|publisher=U.S. Department of Defense}}
After the 10th anniversary of the discovery, in 2022, remains of 41 persons had been recovered and identified. As of June 2025, that number is 49.
File:UH-60 transports crash recovery team members to Colony Glacier - July 2012,.jpg|2012: UH-60 transports crash recovery team to Colony Glacier after a sighting of possible wreckage
File:Part of debris field on Colony Glacier from wreckage of USAF C-124 Globemaster aircraft that crashed Nov. 22, 1952, near Mount Gannett, Alaska - June 2022.jpg|2022: Part of the debris field left on Colony Glacier
File:LtGen. Ronald Place - Director of the Defense Health Agenc - hikes on Colony Glacier on tour of C-124 Globemaster II crash site - June 2022.jpg|2022: LtGen Ronald Place hikes on Colony Glacier
File:Operation Colony Glacier recovery team members cross glacier ridge - June 2023.jpg|2023: Recovery team members cross glacier ridge
File:US Army Sgt Smith scales crevasse wall after recovering remains, personal effects, equipment from 1952 C-124 wreckage in Operation Colony Glacier - June 2023.jpg|2023: Scaling crevasses wall after recovering remains
File:U.S. Air Force Capt. Travis Lockwood, Operation Colony Glacier ground forces commander and recovery team lead, searches for remains of a C-124 Globemaster crash from 1952 on Colony Glacier, Alaska, June 17, 2025.jpg|2025: Searching for remains on Colony Glacier
See also
{{Commons|Category:1952 Mount Gannett C-124 crash recovery|the 1952 Mount Gannett C-124 crash recovery}}
- 1952 Moses Lake C-124 crash, another C-124 crash less than a month later that killed 87 men and was at that time the deadliest-ever aviation accident.
- Tachikawa air disaster, a June 1953 air accident also involving a C-124.
References
{{reflist|refs=
|publisher=Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations}}
}}
{{Clear}}
Further reading
- {{cite book|title=The Longest Flight Home |first=Steve |last=Scott | isbn=148177266X |publisher=Author House| date=2013}}
- {{cite book|first=Tonja |last=Anderson-Dell |date=2017|title= Gifts From a Glacier: The Quest for an American Flag and 52 Souls |publisher=Richter Publishing|isbn=1945812133}}
External links
- [https://www.dafhistory.af.mil/Portals/16/documents/Timelines/Aircraft%20Accident%20Reports/51-107A_Aircraft_Accident.pdf?ver=2016-08-30-151555-260 Alaskan Air Command Report of a Major Aircraft Accident Involving C-124A No. 51-107A]
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in the 1950s}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in 1952}}{{DEFAULTSORT:Mount Gannett C-124 crash}}
Category:Accidents and incidents involving the Douglas C-124 Globemaster II
Category:Accidents and incidents involving United States Air Force aircraft
Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in Alaska
Category:November 1952 in the United States
Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in 1952