1962 Air Nautic Boeing 307 crash

1962 Air Nautic Boeing 307 crash

Air Nautic Boeing 307, similar to the aircraft involved
Accident
Date	29 December 1962
Summary	Controlled flight into terrain
Site	Monte Renoso, Corsica (France) 42°01′59″N9°04′48″E / 42.03306°N 9.08000°E / 42.03306; 9.08000
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Boeing 307 Stratoliner
Operator	Air Nautic
Registration	F-BELZ
Flight origin	Bastia-Poretta Airport, Bastia, France
Stopover	Ajaccio Napoleon Bonaparte Airport, Ajaccio, France
Destination	Nice Côte d'Azur Airport, Nice, France
Occupants	25
Passengers	22
Crew	3
Fatalities	25
Survivors	0

On 29 December 1962, a Boeing 307 Stratoliner of Air Nautic (also referred as AirNautic) operating as a charter passenger flight from Bastia to Nice via Ajaccio crashed into Monte Renoso mountain on the island of Corsica, France. In the accident, all 25 occupants were killed. ^{[1] [2]}

Aircraft

The aircraft involved was a twenty-two-year-old four-engine turboprop Boeing 307 Stratoliner with serial number 2001 and registration F-BELZ.

Investigation

The accident was investigated by the Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (BEA).

In June 1964, the BEA published their findings. A series of errors had been made by the crew, who made insufficient preparation for the flight and committed a serious error in estimating the duration of the flight. The crew failed to observe the cruising altitude entered on the flight plan and check properly the navigation of the aircraft, which resulted in a wrong estimation of the position of the aircraft. They also failed to maintain a safe altitude and started the descent prematurely, subsequently entering into instrument flight conditions. ^[3]

See also

• France portal
• Aviation portal

• 1963 Air Nautic Vickers Viking crash

References

1. "Drame du Renoso : l'émotion 50 ans après". France 3 Corse. 29 December 2012. Retrieved 9 July 2025.
2. "Les sauveteurs ont atteint les pentes du mont Renoso sur lesquelles s'est écrasé l'avion Bastia-Nice. Il n'y a aucun survivant". www.lemonde.fr. January 1963. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
3. "Rapport final de la commission d'enquête sur l'accident survenu le 29 décembre 1962 sur les pentes du Monte Renoso (Corse) à l'avion Boeing 307 F- BELZ de la Compagnie Air Nautic" [Final report of the commission of inquiry into the accident which occurred on December 29, 1962 in Monte Renoso.](PDF) (in French). Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety. 16 June 1964. Retrieved 14 July 2025.

Sources

• Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network