American Aircraft Crashed in Beruas in 1945
A United States Dakota C-47B (43-16261) aircraft crashed on Gunung Bubu, Beruas, while on a flight from Singapore to Butterworth Airport on November 27, 1945.
It is said that the aircraft went missing and lost contact while still in the airspace over Melaka. Three people died in the crash and were left on Gunung Bubu for 70 years.
In fact, the wreckage of the crashed aircraft had been spotted from the air as early as 1966, with the serial number 316261 clearly visible on the tail, along with the Air Transport Command emblem. In 1995, the crash site was rediscovered by rattan collectors, and representatives from the National Museum and the Armed Forces Museum stated they would conduct a survey, but no appropriate action was taken.
The Malaysian Ministry of Defence, the Malaysian Armed Forces, the US Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, and the United States Department of Defense collaborated on the OP Gangga project to locate the aircraft wreckage and the victims who had been left there for so long. The name OP Gangga was chosen because the Beruas area is famous for the existence of an ancient 2nd-century kingdom called Gangga Negara.
In 2015, OP Gangga was carried out and successfully recovered three human remains identified as the victims of the crash. The three victims of the Dakota C-47B aircraft were pilot Judson B. Basket, co-pilot William H. Myers, and radio operator PFC Donald E. Jones. The remains of these victims were reportedly brought home by the United States government. This mission and collaboration will not end here, as there are still other aircraft that crashed and went missing in Malaysia and Borneo that have yet to be found.
