Aeronaves de México Flight 111

Aeronaves de México Flight 111

A Lockheed L-749 Constellation
Accident
Date	2 June 1958
Summary	Mechanical failures[1]
Site	Cerro Latillas, west of Guadalajara International Airport, in the Municipality of Tlajomulco de Zúñiga, Jalisco, Mexico 20°29′21″N 103°28′05″W
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Lockheed Constellation L-749
Operator	Aeronaves de México
Registration	XA-MEV
Flight origin	Guadalajara International Airport, Mexico
Destination	Mexico City International Airport, Mexico City
Occupants	46
Passengers	39
Crew	7
Fatalities	46
Injuries	0
Survivors	0

Aeroméxico Flight 111 was a scheduled commercial flight from Tijuana to Acapulco with stops in Mazatlán, Guadalajara, and Mexico City. On June 2, 1958, the Lockheed L-749 Constellation operating the flight crashed near Guadalajara killing all 46 occupants.[2]

Accident

The aircraft was a four-engine (four-propeller) Lockheed Constellation with registration number XA-MEV, owned by Aeronaves de México, now Aeroméxico. After taking off from Guadalajara International Airport at 21:53 local time, it crashed into Cerro Latillas, a hill in the municipality of Tlajomulco de Zúñiga, at 22:06.[3] The aircraft carried 39 passengers and seven crew members. All perished.

Passengers

The passengers included:[4][1]

• José Luis Arregui Zepeda, brother of civil engineer Felipe Arregui Zepeda, future builder of Estadio Jalisco,[5] financed by the Banco de Zamora and the Compañía General de Aceptaciones de Monterrey
• Dionisio Fernández Sahagún, co-founder of the Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara (UAG)[6][7] and father of journalist José Antonio Fernández Salazar (1 February 1956 – 5 September 2018)
• American Oceanographer Townsend Cromwell (Boston, Massachusetts, 3 November 1922 – Tlajomulco de Zúñiga, Jalisco, 2 June 1958)
• American Scientist Bell M. Shimada (Seattle, Washington, 17 January 1922 – Tlajomulco de Zúñiga, Jalisco, 2 June 1958).

The last two were heading to Acapulco to join a Scottish Expedition studying the currents of the Pacific Ocean, in connection with the International Geophysical Year 1957–1958.

Pilot and co-pilot: Captains Alfonso Ceceña Gastélum and Roberto Herrera, respectively.

At the crash site, there was looting by locals.[2]

Causes

The weather conditions were adverse, with heavy rain, but the cause of the accident was mechanical failures of the four-engine aircraft.[4]

See also

• Aviation accident

References

1. "IN MEMORIAM: 2 de junio de 1958: "La peor tragedia de la aviación nacional"". El Informador. 29 May 2008. Archived from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
2. Arenas Inda, Elsa (27 August 2017). "Cayó un avión en Tlajomulco, fallecieron 42 adultos y 2 niños". El Occidental. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
3. "El Constellation, vuelo 111 con destino a Acapulco". El Informador. 31 May 2008. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
4. "El trágico avión era ya muy viejo y había sido reformado. Ir al sitio web indicado, dar clic en las palabras naranja "Navegación Directa", aprobar el examen Captcha "No soy robot", seleccionar año 1958, seleccionar mes 06, seleccionar día 04, seleccionar página 1". El Informador. 4 June 1958. Archived from the original on 6 May 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
5. Karelia Alba (20 December 2008). "El personaje: un ingeniero civil que ha marcado la ciudad". El Informador. Archived from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
6. "La UAG cumple 87 años". 3 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.^[permanent dead link‍]
7. "Detalle del centro Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara (UAG)". Retrieved 31 March 2022.