Antarctic BT-67 Suffers Runway Excursion

Historic airframe sustains damage during training flight landing.

Antarctic BT-67 Suffers Excursion in Argentina
[Credit: juan68 | Shutterstock]
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Key Takeaways:

  • A Basler BT-67 aircraft veered off the runway during a training flight landing at Río Grande Airport in Argentina, causing visible damage to the aircraft but no injuries to its occupants.
  • The incident involved a heavily modernized 1943 Douglas DC-3 (C-47A) airframe, which Argentinian company Mirgor recently acquired for cargo and Antarctic flight operations.
  • Local authorities have secured the scene and initiated an investigation, with the aircraft currently grounded pending technical evaluation.
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A Basler BT-67 veered off the left side of runway 26 during landing Monday at Río Grande-Gobernador Ramón Trejo Noel International Airport in Argentina. The aircraft was reportedly completing a training flight when it departed the runway during the landing roll at around midday. None of the aircraft’s occupants were injured. Photos of the excursion appear to show a collapsed landing gear and visible damage to the wings and propellers.

The aircraft, Basler conversion number 71, is a heavily modernized Douglas DC-3 airframe built in 1943 as a C-47A for the U.S. Army Air Forces. It later served with the Royal Air Force before entering civilian use with Canadian and U.S. airlines.

Argentinian company, Mirgor, took delivery of the BT-67 earlier this year in August following a 33-hour, 11,280-kilometer ferry flight from Oshkosh, Wisconsin, with multiple stops in the United States, Panama, Peru and Chile. Mirgor planned to operate the turboprop in Argentina for cargo and, under its Voyal brand, Antarctic flights in coordination with Argentina’s Air Force.

Local authorities have secured the scene after the excursion and have begun an investigation. The aircraft remains grounded at Río Grande pending technical evaluation.

Matt Ryan

Matt is AVweb's lead editor. His eyes have been turned to the sky for as long as he can remember. Now a fixed-wing pilot, instructor and aviation writer, Matt also leads and teaches a high school aviation program in the Dallas area. Beyond his lifelong obsession with aviation, Matt loves to travel and has lived in Greece, Czechia and Germany for studies and for work.
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