The Viscount crashed in a wood 3 miles (4.8 km) from the threshold of Gatwick runway during its final approach to land in extensive fog.

Over Epsom range at 16:21 hrs, the Turkish Airlines captain was instructed by the London Airport Commandant to divert to Gatwick due to poor visibility at Heathrow.

The latest actual weather conditions observed at Gatwick Airport were surface wind calm, visibility 1,800 yards (1,600 m), mist, no low cloud, and shallow ground fog patches of only 1 foot (0.30 m) to 5 feet (1.5 m) in depth.

The weather reported to the aircraft was "surface wind calm, visibility one decimal one nautical miles, mist, three oktas at eight hundred feet, the QFE one zero three six", which was acknowledged by the pilot.

The aircraft was visible along the approach path centre line on the radar screen towards the runway until it disappeared about 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) from the threshold.

The aircraft had flown into the top of trees 390 feet (120 m) AMSL at the edge of Jordan's Wood east of the Newdigate-Rusper road[2] on a heading parallel to the approach path to Runway 08R at Gatwick.

The aircraft lost its wings and had its engines torn off as it descended at an angle of about 6 degrees from the horizontal 300 yards (270 m) through the woods, and touched the ground with its wheels.

After rising again slightly the main part of the wreckage landed upside down with trees embedded in the mangled fuselage about 100 yards (91 m) further on, after which it caught fire.

The accident site was located 2.8 nautical miles (5.2 km) from the runway threshold and 550 feet (170 m) to the north of the approach path centre line.

Gatwick Airport alerted the local fire and rescue services, and soon it was confirmed that the aircraft had crashed in the area in which it had disappeared from the radar screen.

[3] While Tony Bailey was engaged in helping the other victims, his wife took Menderes and two other survivors by car to her farmhouse 200 yards (180 m) away and gave first aid.

After changing the call sign to TC-SEV and repainting the livery to the original red-and-white striped pajamas design, the airframe was put on display in the Military Aviation Museum in Yeşilköy, Istanbul.

A historical and romantic television series titled Hatırla Sevgili (Remember Darling) on the Turkish ATV channel also depicts the events around the accident and the survival of Menderes, again featuring the replica aircraft.