Switzerland Plane Crash Hochwald, 1974 (b/w photo)

On the occasion of the first anniversary of the air crash of Hochwald, Solothurn, a commemoration ceremony was held at the scene of the accident and a memorial stone was unveiled, taken on 10 April 1973. On 10 April 1973, the heaviest air crash in Switzerland to date took place: 108 people died when an English charter plane crashed near Hochwald ( SO) not far from Basel. On the day of the accident, fog, snow drift and strong winds prevailed when Vickers Vanguard 952, which started in Bristol, England, made its approach to Basel-Muelhausen airport. But the plane couldn't land and took off. After that, the crew apparently lost their bearings, and shortly afterwards, a catastrophe occurred 16 kilometers south of the airport: The plane flew against a wooded slope near Hochmatt in Solothurn in a second attempt to take off: 108 of the 145 English passengers and crew members who wanted to make a day trip to the Basel Model Fair were killed in the crash, 37 survived because they had been in the demolished