On this day 51 yrs ago

On Thursday 22nd September 1966 an Ansett-ANA Flight 149 took off from Mount Isa Airport  (ISA / YBMA) for Brisbane via Longreach. At 12:08pm Flight 149 departed for a 73-minute flight to Longreach Airport (LRE / YLRE).  The flight progressed uneventfully until 12:52pm when the Longreach-Flight Service Unit heard the crew of VH-RMI say that it was on an emergency descent and to stand by. Two minutes later the aircraft advised that there were fire warnings in respect of No.1 and 2 engines, that one of these warning conditions had ceased and that the propeller of the other engine could not be feathered. At 12:59pm, information from the crew of Flight 149 indicated that there was a visible fire in no. 2 engine and that the aircraft was diverting below 5000 feet, to Winton (WIN / YWTN).
The Vickers Viscount was descending at an indicated airspeed close to 170 knots between 3500 and 4000 feet above ground level . At this point the port wing failed upwards between engines 1 and 2. It struck the top of the fuselage, which at the same time was cut open by the blades of the no.1 engine, and fell away from the remainder of the aircraft . The cabin shell above floor level was quickly broken away by air loads until eventually the rear fuselage and empennage also separated from the aircraft. The remaining forward fuselage, with the lower mid fuselage, starboard, wing and, engines and port wing stub with the no. 2 engine still attached, struck the ground at the edge of a clay pan and was immediately engulfed in flames.

As a result of this accident several changes to operating and maintenance procedures were made by Ansett-A.N.A and by the contracting organisation responsible for the periodic overhaul of the cabin blowers. The accident also emphasised the need for airline aircraft to carry cockpit voice recorders, as well as flight data recorders, particularly to cover accidents where the flight crew are not survivors. Within a couple of years most airline aircraft in Australia were fitted with this type of equipment.

4 crew and 20 passengers lost their lives

Aircraft Details are:
Operator: Ansett ANA
Aircraft Type: Vickers 832 Viscount
Engines: 4 Rolls-Royce Dart 525
Registration: VH-RMI
Serial Number: 416
Flight Number: AN 149
First Flight: 1959