South African Airways Flight 406
A Viscount 806, similar to the accident aircraft | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 13 March 1967 |
| Summary | Loss of control for unknown reasons; possible pilot incapacitation or in-flight structural failure |
| Site | Indian Ocean off Kayser's Beach, Cape Province, South Africa 33°13.45′S 27°38.3′E / 33.22417°S 27.6383°E |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Vickers Viscount 818 |
| Aircraft name | Rietbok |
| Operator | South African Airways |
| IATA flight No. | SA406 |
| ICAO flight No. | SAA406 |
| Call sign | SPRINGBOK 406 |
| Registration | ZS-CVA |
| Flight origin | H.F. Verwoerd Airport, Port Elizabeth |
| 1st stopover | Ben Schoeman Airport, East London |
| 2nd stopover | J.B.M. Hertzog Airport, Bloemfontein |
| Destination | Jan Smuts Int'l Airport, Johannesburg |
| Occupants | 25 |
| Passengers | 20 |
| Crew | 5 |
| Fatalities | 25 |
| Survivors | 0 |
South African Airways Flight 406, also known as The Rietbok Crash, was a scheduled passenger flight on 13 March 1967 that crashed into the sea on approach to East London, South Africa. All 25 passengers and crew on board were killed. The cause of the accident was never determined. However, the air accident report speculated, without supporting evidence, that the captain of the plane suffered a heart attack while on approach and the first officer was unable to regain control of the aircraft. Like the crash of South African Airways Flight 295 two decades later, there was, and still is, great contention about the ultimate cause of the aircraft accident.