Federal, WY Flying Box Car Crashes, July 1956

FOUR AIRMEN KILLED IN C-119 "BOX CAR" CRASH.

Federal, Wyo. -- (UP) -- Four airmen were killed when an Air Force C-119 "Flying box car" crashed and burned on a ranch five miles southwest of Federal, Wyo., late yesterday. The plane was enroute from Offutt Air Force Base at Omaha, Neb., to Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho.
The plane sheared off two telephone poles and broke apart. The bodies, all still strapped to their seats, were thrown clear of the main wreckage which was scattered over a quarter mile area.
Names of the victims in the C-119 crash were withheld pending notification of next of kin

Albuquerque Tribune New Mexico 1956-07-28

-----------------------------

4 AIRMEN KILLED NEAR CHEYENNE.

Federal, Wyo. (AP) -- An Air Force C119 crashed five miles southwest of here Friday in rolling ranch country and burst into flames. The four crewmen aboard were killed.
A rancher, Hugh McPhee, said he saw the twin-engine plane flying "awfully low," then it disappeared behind a knoll, and he heard a tremendous crash.
Crash crews were dispatched to the scene from Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, 25 miles southwest of here. The four bodies were recovered.
Officials of the Civil Aeronautics Administration said the fuselage was half burned. The plane crashed on the King Merritt ranch, about 100 yards from the ranch house.
The scene of the crash is in extreme southeastern Wyoming, not too far from the Colorado and Nebraska state lines. The country is hilly and cut by canyons. Weather was good over the area throughout the day.
Warren officials said the plane was bound from Offut Air Force Base at Omaha, Neb., to Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho. They said the cause of the crash was not determined. An Air Force board of inquiry was investigating the accident.
The victims, identified by Warren Air Force Base officials at Cheyenne, were:
Capt. EUGENE McILROY, 38, of Riverside, Calif., the pilot.
Capt. EMROY E. LONG, 32, of Roswell, Ga., the co-pilot.
1st Lt. THOMAS D. OLDHAM, 25, of Memphis, Tenn, the navigator.
S. Sgt. ALFRED M. WILLIAMS, 28, of Route 3, Jerome, Idaho, the engineer.
Officials said the cause of the crash was undetermined.

Greeley Daily Tribune Colorado 1956-07-28
__________________

Researched and Transcribed by Stu Beitler. Thank you, Stu!