Crash site	Torghatten mountain, Norway
Airline	Widerøes Flyveselskap
Aircraft	De Havilland Canada DHC-7  –  LN-WFN
Route	Trondheim  –  Namsos  –  Brønnøysund  –  Sandnessjøen  –   Bodø
Crew	3  –  0 survivors
Passengers	33  –  0 survivors

 

The crash

The plane took off from Namsos at 20:07. At 20:20 the crew began their descent for Brønnøysund airport. For unknown reasons the crew left the prescribed altitude 4 NM too soon and came out of course. At 20:30 the plane crashed into the mountion side about 8 km south-west of the airport.
The plane was totally damaged and small fires broke out.

 

The mail

The plane carried some mail which was found spread at the bottom of the mountain.
On 26 June the post office at Brønnøysund sent a report to the Bodø post office:
According to information we have received from Namsos post office, the plane was carrying 14 kg of mail. On 9^th May we received 2 kg to addressees in the Bardufoss and Narvik areas. It was damaged both by water and by fire, but most was despatched from here the same day with an explanation. Some copies of Namdal Arbeiderblad (newspaper) were in such a bad state that they were thrown away.
A further 8.4 kg of mail was received by us on 13^th May which had to be sorted for Bodö and Tromsö. With the exception of the newspapers this was sent out on the 13^th and 14^th May with and explanation to the appropriate addressees. Namdal Arbeiderblad was informed by Namsos post office that all of the newspapers had to be destroyed. Investigations show that mail to the Harstad area and to Brönnöysund is still missing. Searches at the scene of the accident were called off after one and a half week, and we have not received any further mail. We must therefore conclude that this mail has been lost.
Letters to addresses in Tromsö postal district were sent out with an explanatory letter – see illustration below.
Only one item from this crash has been recorded.

 

 

 

 

 

Examples of mail

Cover postmarked SKAGE I NAMDALEN  6-5-88 to Tromsø. The cover was forwarded with an explanatory letter. Translation of the text: The enclosed item was damaged and delayed having been despatched from Namsos on flight WF 710 which crashed at Brönnöysund on 6.5.88. It was recovered and handed in to Brönnöysund post office on 13.5.88. Unknown Collection.