All 83 occupants dead

60th anniversary of the airplane drama on the Glungezer

The wreckage was widely scattered in the difficult-to-access terrain on the Glungezer.

(Bild: Archiv/LPD Tirol)

Thursday marks the 60th anniversary of Austria's worst aviation accident. The British passenger plane "Britannia 312" crashed on February 29, 1964 on the Glungezer mountain near Hall in Tyrol. All 83 occupants lost their lives. An investigation revealed that a pilot error had led to the accident. A memorial service is held on the Glungezer.

It was at 3.18 pm when the "Britannia" reported to Innsbruck Airport for the last time. The four-engine British Eagle International Airlines plane with the flight number 802/6 then disappeared. As it turned out the next day, the plane had crashed on the 2677-metre-high Glungezer above the municipality of Tulfes and was then buried by an avalanche. 75 passengers and eight crew members died in the white void.

Radio contact was suddenly lost
The plane, built in 1958, was supposed to land shortly after 3 p.m. at the Alpine airport in Innsbruck, which is known for its difficult conditions. During the landing approach, the experienced 40-year-old pilot got in touch. He stated that he could not push through the clouds due to the poor visibility and would therefore fly in the Patscherkofel area for the time being. A few minutes later, radio contact was lost. The pilots no longer responded to the requests from air traffic control.

The accident triggered an avalanche.

(Bild: Archiv/LPD Tirol)

While there had initially been hope that the plane could have landed outside the bad weather zone, the possibility of a crash became increasingly likely over the course of the afternoon. "Alpine gendarmes, mountain rescuers and army soldiers" set off to search the alpine terrain, according to media reports at the time.

Accident triggered an avalanche
The search operation proved to be extremely difficult, however, as nobody knew where the plane had last been. As later investigations revealed, the "Britannia" crashed into the Glungezer at 3.14 p.m. at an altitude of 2601 meters east of the Gamslahnerspitze and crashed. At the time, there were dense clouds and heavy snowfall in the area. The accident triggered a huge avalanche of snow. It swept most of the aircraft debris and the bodies 400 meters into the depths and buried them underneath.

No one survived the disaster
As the weather was still bad the following day and no search flights were possible from Innsbruck, two US Air Force reconnaissance planes equipped with radar set off on a search from Scotland. The wreckage of the ill-fated plane was located at around 11.30 am. The snow cover was covered with kerosene. Only a few bodies and debris were visible. A rescue operation was initiated immediately. The rescuers realized that no one had survived the disaster. It took several weeks before all the bodies could be recovered and identified.

Height of the Glungezer misjudged
A technical fault was ruled out as the cause of the accident. The pilot had apparently tried to fly below the clouds, contrary to regulations, in order to land at Innsbruck airport, 15 kilometers away. He crashed into the steep eastern flank of the Glungezer due to a low altitude and lack of visibility. It was also assumed that the pilot had oriented himself to the lower Patscherkofel and misjudged the height of the Glungezer.

Several technical improvements after the tragedy
According to Austro Control, a so-called instrument approach procedure or cloud penetration procedure was used at Innsbruck Airport from 1976, not least because of the accident. It enables a safe approach through cloud cover. Numerous other technical improvements and innovations - such as runway lighting or radar monitoring - followed. It was not until 15 years after the air disaster that larger scheduled aircraft were able to fly to the airport again on a regular basis.

Memorial service on the anniversary
On the 60th anniversary, the disaster is commemorated in a "memorial climb" to the summit cross of the Schartenkogel on the Glungezer. With the participation of the British Consulate, the Alpine Club, the Hall and Innsbruck mountain rescue services and the Alpine police, among others, a memorial service is held for the victims and the rescuers who set off on foot from the Voldertal valley to the scene of the accident.