Dhahran Diary Title: KLM Crash-landing DD10 The Gazelle, the Camel, and the Oryx comprised the backbone of ARAMCO's aviation fleet. These DC-4s and DC-6s ran the long international legs between Dhahran and New York. But they were unable to handle all the traffic. Several airlines, including KLM, serviced Dhahran. (rcc) In the early 1950s, a KLM flight bound for Dhahran encountered an unexpected shamaal on arrival. The captain made several approaches and was unable to land. Bahrain was socked in, too. The pilot steered for Basra at the head of the Gulf but en route, Dhahran's visibility began to improve and the pilot turned back toward his original destination. In the vicinity of Ras Tanura, the plane ran low or out of fuel, so the pilot made a blind, wheels-up landing in the desert. There were no injuries and the aircraft sustained minimal damage. The captain was a real hero! I never saw the aircraft at the crash-landing site but it was not for the lacking of trying. Dave Taylor lived a few doors away and he had a Triumph 500 motorcycle. He somehow was allowed to ride on camp but was forbidden to take it outside the gate. One morning, he told me of his plan to go up toward RT and check out the crash site. I threw a leg over and we were off. The main gate was on Dallah Road at the time and Dave just waved and sailed through the gate like he owned the place. I think he was in ninth grade then, and big for his age. We took the road north past Jebel Shamaal. He rode the cycle like his hair was on fire and it didn't take long for my kidneys to begin aching with every bump in the road. We stayed west of Ras Tanura and followed tire tracks for a while before abandoning our excursion. We never found the plane or the convoy of support equipment that ARAMCO sent up to deliver the plane to the Dhahran Airfield. It was a wild goose chase. ARAMCO's heavy equipment arrived at the crash site soon after the forced landing and loaded the airplane onto a lowboy. They trucked the airliner to Dhahran where ARAMCO's flight facilities were put at the disposal of KLM. Replacement propellers and other parts were flown in and KLM technicians made repairs. The plane was then flown back to the Netherlands. This Flying Dutchman bellied in with minimal damage, a tribute to Douglas Aircraft and the pilot. ARAMCO exhibited its can-do attitude by rescuing the plane from the desert north of Dhahran so it could fly again. The aircraft was raised so the landing gear could be extended. Then it was elevated with crane and sling so a lowboy could be placed beneath for the journey to the Dhahran Air Field. A close-up shows the propeller damage. The airplane looks in remarkably good condition. Photographs provided by Malcolm MacKenzie and taken by his father circa 1953. In appreciation, KLM gave ARAMCO three huge oil paintings depicting KLM airliners in idealized flight. I remember how vivid the colors were and how dramatically the clouds were depicted. The frames were gold colored and very ornate. They hung in the two Dhahran administration buildings. I recall seeing them when I was a summer employee in 1958. When I returned to ARAMCO in 1982, I worked in Office Services as a planning and programs analyst. I made casual inquiries about the KLM paintings when I could not find them hanging anywhere in the Dhahran Core Complex, which now had grown to six buildings. In addition to South Admin and North Admin, ARAMCO had added East Admin, the Tower, the Engineering, and EXPEC buildings. This made searching difficult but working for a department like Office Services allowed me to see storage places and records not normally viewed. Even ARAMCO personnel who had been in Dhahran in the1950s were unable to remember the crash landing or the paintings. I did not visit every piece of office space, so it is possible the paintings were hanging in one of the other districts, or even in the ARAMCO flight offices. In the summer of 1997, I was able to have dinner with Malcolm MacKenzie, a friend from Dhahran in the 50s. He showed me a photo album which had several snaps of the disabled KLM aircraft. I borrowed them and as the reader can see, copies now grace these pages. They were taken by Malcolm’s father. I hope they jog someone’s memory. I wonder if ARAMCO uses these paintings in a museum exhibit or if they are installed on permanent exhibit in one of ARAMCO’s worldwide offices. It might be interesting to hear the account of the flight from a passenger's point of view. As for Dave's motorcycle, I walked by his house some time after our fruitless chase to RT. There was an oily patch beneath the cycle; this came from a jagged hole in the crankcase where a rod had departed unexpectedly. Dave was back on foot just like the rest of us. Copyright ©1999-2006 Rolf A. Christophersen All Rights Reserved. Email