Little Eva (aircraft)
Consolidated B-24D Liberator similar to "Little Eva" | |
| incident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 2 December 1942 |
| Summary | fuel exhaustion |
| Site | Near the Gulf of Carpentaria Queensland, Australia 17°20′1″S 139°00′3″E / 17.33361°S 139.00083°E |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Consolidated B-24 Liberator |
| Flight origin | Military base in Kutini-Payamu National Park |
| Destination | Military base in Kutini-Payamu National Park, Queensland, Australia |
| Crew | 10 |
| Fatalities | 7 (two initially, five died before rescue) |
| Survivors | 3 (initially 8) |
"Little Eva" was a USAAF Consolidated B-24 Liberator which crashed north-west of Burketown, Queensland (near the Gulf of Carpentaria) on 2 December 1942. The aircraft was returning from a bombing mission when its crew became lost. As the fuel supply approached exhaustion some of the crew took to their parachutes. The survivors, now in two groups, set out on foot. Two of the crew travelled east and came across people after twelve days. The other party comprising six survivors travelled west, with the only surviving member being found some five months later.