October 1957 to February 1963
Middle East Airlines (MEA)
OD-ADE - c/n 244 - a V.754D series Viscount
Lebanon registered
31 October 1957
Registered to Middle East Airlines (MEA) as OD-ADE.
The company name at that time was: - Associated British Airlines (Middle East) Limited.
5 November 1957
UK registration cancelled.
24 November 1957
First flight from Hurn Airport, Bournemouth, Hampshire, England.
12 December 1957
Leased from BOAC Associated Companies Ltd to Middle East Airlines (MEA) in full livery and delivered to Beirut, Lebanon.
1 February 1963
Crashed after a mid-air collision with Türk Hava Kuvvetleri (Turkish Air Force) Douglas C-47 Skytrain CBK-28 near Ankara, Turkey.
MEA flight 265 was descending on approach to Esenboğa International Airport, Ankara, Turkey and had been cleared to land on runway 03. The last radio call received was when the crew reported being over the Ankara NDB at 8,000 feet, descending for 6,500 feet. The Turkish Air Force Douglas C-47 had just completed an instrument training flight and was returning to nearby Etimesgut Air Base under Visual Flight Rules (VFR) conditions.
The Viscount was flying on a heading of 280° magnetic and at a speed of 155 miles per hour (250 KPH) when it overtook the C-47 which was on a heading of 240° magnetic at a speed of 139 miles per hour (225 KPH) when the collision occurred.
The Viscount had an Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) flight plan but was cruising under Visual Flight Rules (VFR) conditions as the weather was clear with good visibility.
The lower side of the nose and the starboard wing of the Viscount struck the C-47 between the port side rear door and the tail at an angle of approximately forty degrees from the left rear, and at an angle of approximately five to ten degrees in an upward direction. The port horizontal tailplane on the C47 was cut off by the No.3 (starboard inner) propeller. The Viscount crew did not see the C-47 cruising below them at 7,000ft on their starboard side and the Viscount, having a higher speed easily caught up with the C47.
At the last moment the MEA pilots saw the C-47 and tried to avoid a collision by pulling up, but it was too late.
The starboard side of the Viscount fuselage was torn open causing some of the passengers to be sucked out. Both aircraft crashed into residential areas of Ankara, killing 87 people on the ground and injuring over 100.
All 11 passengers and 3 crew were sadly killed along with the 3 crew on the C-47.
This was the first fatal accident involving an MEA aircraft since the airline was formed in 1946.
Total time 13,187 hours and 5,515 total landings.
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