Canadian spends three days trekking to find missing 1950s plane wreck with an unsolved mystery

This YouTuber and van-lifer went on a three-day trek to find a missing plane wreck and get to the bottom of a mystery that’s over 70 years old.

The Douglas C-54 Skymaster vanished on January 26, 1950, while flying from Alaska to Montana.

It had 44 people on board: eight crew members and 36 passengers, including two civilians – a woman and her infant son.

The exact location and fate of the C-54 remain unknown, making it one of the greatest unsolved aviation mysteries in history – but this content creator wanted to find answers.

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The search for the missing plane wreck

Despite extensive search efforts to find the Douglas C-54 Skymaster troop transport that tragically dropped off the radar on January 26, 1950, with 44 people on board, it’s never been found.

In fact, a Douglas C-47 later crashed on February 7 during the search effort – thankfully the 10 people onboard survived despite serious injuries.

Adding to the unsolved mystery, that rescue aircraft crash we know was caused by low visibility and downdrafts.

“Little did they know they would also need their own search and rescue,” Lambert said ominously.

That aircraft has never been found, despite people continuing the search each summer to the present day.

Enter van lifer, Foresty Forest, aka Simon Lambert, from Ontario, Canada, who wanted to contribute to getting to the bottom of what happened.

Solving the mystery

Lambert headed out with his dog, Rocco, on a three-day trip with GPS coordinates starting in the Yukon’s Ruby Range mountains near Haines Junction to locate the well-preserved wreckage of the rescue plane.

He traveled 20km via ATV trail before switching to hiking due to muddy paths, dense brush, and signs of bear activity.

On the second day, he hiked 600 meters up the mountain hoping to make a historical discovery stating that it would ‘make international headlines’.

He reaches the site and finds the rescue plane still relatively intact.

Despite the Air Force salvaging parts of the aircraft, Lambert unearths a nameplate from a Pratt & Whitney engine among the wreckage.

“It’s so out of place—just the strangest thing,” he said.

“I’d be happy with this hike even if there wasn’t something special to see at the end of it,” he said of his experience.