1951 Glitfaxi air crash

The 1951 Glitfaxi air crash (Icelandic: Glitfaxaslysið, "the Glitfaxi accident") was a plane crash that occurred on 31 January 1951 when a Douglas DC-3 from Flugfélag Íslands, christened Glitfaxi, crashed in Faxaflói in Iceland, killing all 20 people aboard.[1][2] It remains the second deadliest air crash in Iceland behind the 1947 Héðinsfjörður air crash.[3][4]

1951 Glitfaxi air crash
Accident
Date31 January 1951
SummaryAir crash
SiteFaxaflói, Iceland
Aircraft
Aircraft typeDouglas DC-3
Aircraft nameGlitfaxi
OperatorFlugfélag Íslands
RegistrationTF-ISG
Flight originVestmannaeyjar
DestinationReykjavík
Passengers17
Crew3
Fatalities20

The plane was attempting to land at Reykjavík airport during heavy snowfall. Its first attempt to land was aborted due to low visibility. During its second attempt, all contact was lost with the plane.[5][6] After it became clear that Glitfaxi had disappeared, a search immediately began. The following days, both land, sea and air searches were conducted including by the ICGV Ægir and the herring vessel Fanney that searched the area with depth sounders.[7] While several items belonging to the plane where found in the ocean, the wreck itself was never officially found.[8][9][10]

Aircraft

Glitfaxi was built in 1942 in Santa Monica, California, for the United States Air Force. In November 1946, Flugfélag Íslands bought the aircraft from Scottish Aviation which had converted her for passenger flights.[11]

Aftermath

The crash hit the small town of Vestmannaeyjar hard, where the majority of the passengers where from, leaving 50 children in the town without a father.[12][13]

The accident is featured in the book Hinn hvíti galdur by Ólafur Tryggvason.[14]

References
  1. "Minningarathöfn um þá sem fórust með flugvélinni Glitfaxa hefst í Dómkirkjunni kl. 2 e.h. í dag". Þjóðviljinn (in Icelandic). 24 February 1951. p. 1. Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
  2. "Enginn á Glitfaxa komst lífs af". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 2 February 1951. pp. 1–2. Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
  3. Arnar Þór Ingólfsson (12 June 2019). "Fyrsta banaslysið í flugi frá 2015". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 23 July 2022.
  4. "392 einstaklingar hafa farist". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 22 October 2002. p. 11. Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
  5. "Glitfaxi hefir farizt milli Álftaness og Keilisness". Tíminn (in Icelandic). 2 February 1951. pp. 1–2. Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
  6. "Tíu flugvélar og tíu leitarflokkar hófu leitina að Glitfaxa snemma í morgun". Tíminn (in Icelandic). 1 February 1951. p. 1. Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
  7. "Reynt verður að finna flak Glitfaxa í dag". Vísir (in Icelandic). 2 February 1951. p. 1. Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
  8. "Farþegar og flugvjelaráhöfn sem fórst með Glitfaxa". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 24 February 1951. p. 1. Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
  9. Gísli Baldur Gíslason (31 January 2011). "Flugvélin sem hvarf". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). pp. 12–13. Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
  10. Björgvin Gunnarsson (10 February 2023). "Ráðgátan um eitt dularfyllsta flugslys Íslandssögunnar: Kafari fann flak Glitfaxa". Mannlíf (in Icelandic). No. 2. pp. 10–13. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  11. Arngrímur Sigurðsson; Skúli Jón Sigurðarson (1 January 1971). "Douglas Dakota - TF-ISG". Æskan (in Icelandic). p. 54. Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
  12. Guðbjörg Sigurgeirsdóttir; Ómar Garðarsson (10 February 2011). "Glitfaxaslysið snerti alla Íslendinga en hvergi varð höggið þyngra en í Vestmannaeyjum". Eyjafréttir (in Icelandic). pp. 9–11. Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
  13. Guðrún Gyða Eyþórs Árnadóttir (5 July 2021). "Fimmtíu börn misstu foreldri í áætlunarflugi frá Vestmannaeyjum -"Veit ekki hvernig þetta verður"". Mannlíf (in Icelandic). Retrieved 23 July 2022.
  14. Steingrímur Sigurðsson (2 December 1961). "Hinn hvíti galdur". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 23 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is. open access
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