Varig Flight 850

19°45′41.7″N 70°24′16.3″W / 19.761583°N 70.404528°W / 19.761583; -70.404528AircraftAircraft typeLockheed L-1049G Super ConstellationOperatorVarigRegistrationPP-VDAFlight originSalgado Filho International Airport, Porto Alegre1st stopoverCongonhas Airport2nd stopoverGaleão International Airport3rd stopoverBelém International Airport4th stopoverCiudad Trujillo-General Andrews International AirportLast stopoverMiami International AirportDestinationJohn F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City, United StatesOccupants11Crew11Fatalities1Survivors10

Varig Flight 850 was a scheduled international passenger flight operated by Varig. It was flying from Salgado Filho International Airport, in Porto Alegre, to JFK International Airport, in New York, United States, with stopovers in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Belém, Ciudad Trujillo (now Santo Domingo), and Miami.

On August 14, 1957, the flight departed from Porto Alegre to complete the planned route. In the late morning of August 16, 1957, 50 minutes after take-off from Ciudad Trujillo-General Andrews International Airport in the Dominican Republic, with only 11 crew members, the pilots were forced to make an emergency landing in the Atlantic Ocean after losing two engines; number 3 and 4, which had already taken off without engine number 2. During the emergency landing, the tail detached from the plane, causing the disappearance of a flight attendant.^[1]

The aircraft was a Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation, built in 1955 with factory number 4610. The machine was handed over to VARIG and approved by the company with the aircraft registration PP-VDA. The four-engine long-haul aircraft was equipped with four air-cooled 18-cylinder double radial engines Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclone.^[2]

The machine was one of three of this type with which VARIG started the flights to the United States; the aircraft model was known to have fragile propeller engines, which frequently failed.

On August 14, 1957, the flight piloted by Captain Geraldo Knippling took off from Salgado Filho International Airport, in Porto Alegre. It was bound for New York, United States, with stopovers planned in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Belém, Ciudad Trujilo (now Santo Domingo), and Miami.

At 2:00 A.M. on August 16, 1957, shortly after take-off from Belém, engine number 2 (left side) suddenly lost power. Despite the incident, the crew normally landed in a scheduled stopover at Ciudad Trujillo-General Andrews International Airport in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. After landing, the company reallocated the passengers to other flights.

By designation of the airline, they took off at 11:00 A.M. on August 16, 1957 with failed engines, to carry out the transfer of the aircraft to the US, towards Miami International Airport, with only the crew of 11. According to reports by Captain Knippling in his book,^[3] where he narrated the whole story, he had to use the entire runway for takeoff, and he had difficulties reaching the cruising altitude due to the failed engines.

After 50 minutes, at 3,000 meters, already close to cruising altitude, engine number 4 accelerated more than normal. Pieces of the propeller came off the aircraft and hit engine number 3 right next to it, resulting in a fire, which was quickly controlled by the crew.

However, with only engine number 1 in operation, the plane gradually lost altitude, and the pilots, with no airfield in sight, decided to make an emergency landing at sea, in a position located about 500 meters from the coast of Cabarete, district of the city of Sosua, province of Puerto Plata, northern Dominican Republic. The forced landing was relatively successful, but the tail detached from the aircraft, and one flight attendant disappeared.^[4]

The plane sank after some time, at a depth of 40 meters, and the crew was rescued by local residents and later taken to Ciudad Trijilo.

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