Buffalo 461 was a

Canadian military The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defence Act'', t ...

de Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo The de Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo is a short takeoff and landing (STOL) utility transport turboprop aircraft developed from the earlier piston-powered De Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou, DHC-4 Caribou. The aircraft has extraordinary STOL pe ...

assigned to the second

United Nations Emergency Force The United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) was a military and peacekeeping operation established by the United Nations General Assembly to secure an end to the Suez Crisis, Suez Crisis of 1956 through the establishment of international peacekeeper ...

force in

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

in support of United Nations Security Council Resolution 340. Assigned to a

peacekeeping Peacekeeping comprises activities, especially military ones, intended to create conditions that favor lasting peace. Research generally finds that peacekeeping reduces civilian and battlefield deaths, as well as reduces the risk of renewed w ...

force, Buffalo 461 was shot down by three Syrian

missiles A missile is an airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight aided usually by a propellant, jet engine or rocket motor. Historically, 'missile' referred to any projectile that is thrown, shot or propelled towards a target; this u ...

home.cogeco.ca,
The last mission of Buffalo 461
'', retrieved 27 June 2009 on August 9, 1974, killing all nine passengers and crew. The loss of Buffalo 461 remains the largest single-incident loss of life in the history of

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

peacekeeping operations.buffalo461.ca,
Buffalo 461 – Last Flight
', retrieved 27 June 2009

Flight 51

The second

was authorized by the

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...

to supervise the ceasefire between Egypt and

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

following the end of the

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states led by Egypt and S ...

. Besides preventing additional flare-ups of fighting, the peacekeeping force was also tasked with assisting the

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

with humanitarian efforts in the region. Canada was a leader in these peacekeeping efforts and was providing logistics, signals and air and service units. Their three Buffalo aircraft were flying six-day-a-week schedules. Flight 51 was Buffalo 461's last flight designation, for a routine scheduled supply trip from

Ismailia Ismailia ( ', ) is a city in north-eastern Egypt. Situated on the west bank of the Suez Canal, it is the capital of the Ismailia Governorate. The city had an estimated population of about 1,434,741 according to the statistics issued by the Cen ...

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, Syria. Five crew members and four military passengers were on board when the aircraft took off from Beirut International Airport after a stopover. The First Officer,

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Keith Mirau, received clearance to enter Syrian airspace from the Damascus air traffic control centre at 0945 GMT. Shortly after crossing from

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

into Syria the plane was hit by a surface-to-air missile launched from a Syrian airfield. Moments later two more missiles struck and destroyed the plane, scattering wreckage across a field near the Syrian town of Ad Dimas. All nine on board were killed.

Aircraft

The aircraft, the 16th Buffalo built, first flown in 1968, was a twin-engined

(CC-115 – Canadian military designation) utility transport with Canadian military serial number ''115461''.

Aftermath and legacy

The Canadian

Department of National Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divided ...

launched a board of Inquiry to investigate the loss of Buffalo 461. The board was led by LCol J.A. Cann who was unable to determine if the missile attack was accidental or done intentionally to put pressure on the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

to curtail Israeli flights over Syrian airspace. The

Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum The Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum is an aviation museum located at the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport in Mount Hope, Ontario, Canada. The museum has 47 military jets and propeller-driven aircraft on display. Displayed is a co ...

has undertaken a project to rebuild an ex-

Sudanese Air Force The Sudanese Air Force () is the air force, aerial warfare branch of the Military of Sudan, Sudanese Armed Forces. It was established in 1956 following Sudan's independence earlier that year, and first saw action in the First Sudanese Civil War. ...

DHC-5D to represent Buffalo 461 as a tribute to those lost on Buffalo 461 and all Canadian peacekeepers. In 1993 British Columbia established August 9 as '' Peacekeepers' Day'' and this was recognized nationally in 2008 by the

Canadian government The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes ministers of the Crown ( ...

. A fragment of the original aircraft is on display at the

Canadian War Museum The Canadian War Museum (CWM) () is a National museums of Canada, national museum on the military history of Canada, country's military history in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum serves as both an educational facility on Canadian military hist ...

as a memorial to the lost crew members and passengers, who have become known as the ''Buffalo Nine'', and a memorial has also been erected at

Buffalo Park Buffalo Park is a cricket ground located in East London, Eastern Cape, South Africa. It is one of the home grounds for the Warriors cricket team, and the principal home ground for Border. It can hold up to 20,000 spectators. Buffalo Park superse ...

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

References

External links

Canadian Landmine Foundation

Chief of Defence Staff Announcement

The Blue Beret – Canadian Armed Forces Veterans Newsletter
{{coord, 35, N, 38, E, display=title Aviation accidents and incidents in 1974 Aviation accidents and incidents in Syria 20th-century aircraft shootdown incidents Accidents and incidents involving the de Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo Accidents and incidents involving military aircraft Individual aircraft August 1974 in Asia 1974 disasters in Syria

Flight 51

Aircraft

Aftermath and legacy

See also

References

External links