Aircraft crash

“ As far as could be determined from an examination of the damaged airframe components, there was no evidence to indicate that the aircraft was not airworthy prior to the crash.
Impact forces were of such magnitude that the four engines were widely separated in the wreckage area. Molten masses of aluminum were evidence of the intense fire after impact. All propeller blades were found and from propeller domes, hubs, and blade positions examined, it was determined that they were set at blade angles between 29 degrees and 37 degrees at impact. ”

“ MR. HAMMACK: After you were notified of the accident, what did you do?
THE WITNESS: After I got the message I notified my shift leader from the tactical operation command to dispatch police officers to the scene where it's possible that the -- the aircraft went down and then to give me a feedback as to actually whether it's a down aircraft or what. About 20 minutes later I got a phone call again from my command that it is confirmed that it's aircraft crashed, and my two police officers that were assigned to the southern district was the ones that confirmed the -- the aircraft crash. ”

“ The chances of a collision in mid-air with one of the British seaplanes suggested itself. The idea was not an inviting one—the impact of two frail and swiftly moving objects at an aggregate rate of nearly two hundred miles an hour, and the sickening crash to earth. There would be some satisfaction in knowing that an enemy aircraft was destroyed in this fashion, but the possibility—remote, no doubt—of sending one's fellow airmen and oneself to instant destruction was a proposition for which the misty air was responsible.
"I'm going to shut off the juice," announced Billy to his observer. ”

“ One of the greatest dangers of flying a seaplane is due to the fact that the engine is installed not in the hull but high above the aviators’ heads, upon which it is apt to fall in case of a crash.
The student was next permitted to fly alone. Most machines were so strongly built that accidents were seldom caused by breakage, although, of course, before each flight the aviator and his mechanic critically examined his machine for broken parts. With a reasonable amount of care straight flying by daylight was comparatively safe. ”

“ The pilot attempted to land on the east-west runway, toward the east, but undershot, contacting the ground about 8 feet from the field boundary and 75 feet from the runway. The wheels struck the boundary, made up of loose rocks approximately fifteen inches high. The aircraft bounced into the air slightly, contacted the ground again very smoothly, and rolled straight ahead for several hundred feet before veering to the right and coming to rest about 1800 feet from the field boundary.
Subsequent investigation indicated that the right landing gear failed when it struck the rocks. ”

“ Clearly, Captain Perry was not attempting an emergency landing at the time of the crash for he had made no use of his radio to indicate that he was in trouble nor did he drop landing flares to serve as guides during such a landing. In addition, the aircraft apparently traveled the last 1500 feet preceding the crash in practically level flight and the condition of the engines and propellers as found in the wreckage revealed that at the time of the crash a normal amount of power for that stage of a let-down-through procedure was being applied to the engines. ”

“ Moreover, the known facts concerning the operation of the aircraft in the vicinity of Atlanta lead inevitably to the conclusion that the crash cannot be attributed to any mechanical or structural failure, with the possible exception of the altimeters. From the testimony of witnesses on the ground who saw or heard the airplane during its flight out the southeast leg of the Atlanta range, it appears that operations were being conducted at all times at an altitude substantially below normal. ”

“ Prior to a scheduled departure, the aircraft was taxied into take-off position and, while the engines were being warmed and run up, the left landing gear retracted, allowing the left wing to settle. The left propeller and the left wing tip struck the ground with resultant minor damage. ”

“ The carrier, aircraft and pilots were properly certificated. Captain Cramer, having very limited flight time in the aircraft, was at the controls with Captain Goyette acting in a supervisory capacity. Conditions of weather and water surface within the vicinity of Port of Spain were satisfactory for a safe approach and landing. The plane first contacted the water at more than normal landing speed and in a nose-low attitude. The crash occurred at a point 11⁄4 miles short of the intended landing area. ”

“ Thereafter, the aircraft would have to turn to a heading of approximately 236 degrees and travel the seven miles to the crash site at an average groundspeed of 365 knots. That an aircraft would proceed on a track 50 degrees displaced from the assigned heading without causing some concern and query on the part of the controller is difficult to accept. ”

“ An air collision between EAL's Flight 45 en route from Boston, Mass., to Miami, Fla., and a USAAF A-26 aircraft engaged in local practice flight resulted fatally to one occupant of the airliner and to two occupants of the Army plane, major damage to the first plane and demolition of the latter. ”

“ It can move through the air at forty miles an hour, but high speed will cause it to buckle in the nose.
Bump—A rising or falling column of air which may be met while flying. A machine will be bumped up or bumped down on a bumpy day. A hot day over flat country, at noon, will generally be exceedingly bumpy.
Crash—Any airplane accident. It may be a complete wreck or the plane may only be slightly injured by a careless landing. Crashes are often classified by the extent of damage. A class A crash, for instance, is a complete washout. A class D crash is an undercarriage and propeller broken. ”

“ Examination was made of the wreckage including the engines, propellers, instruments, radio equipment, controls and other parts of the aircraft, by technical representatives of the Civil Aeronautics Board. The results of this examination showed that there was no structural or mechanical failure of the airplane prior to the time it struck the trees southeast of the airport. ”

“ The agony felt by the pilot and passenger seems to transmit itself to you. You are helpless to avert the certain death. You cannot even turn your eyes away at the moment of impact. In the dull, grinding crash there is the sound of breaking bones....
In spite of their bombardment of open towns and the use of explosive bullets in their aërial machine guns, the Boches have shown up in a better light in aviation than in any other arm. ”

“ The wreckage of the Airliner was found approximately two miles west of the Army Airport at Palm Springs and about three miles south of the center of the airway. Parts of the aircraft were scattered over on area about two miles from the main portion of the wreckage. The impact with the ground and subsequent fire resulted in such extensive damage to the aircraft that little could be learned from an examination. ”

“ If, however, one happens to be directly underneath where the shrapnel shells are bursting and realizes that all that goes up comes down again, one takes more than a spectacular interest in such an incident. By night aviators afford one even greater excitement, trying to spot the hostile machine and locate it by the sound of its engine. Then perhaps a terrific crash as it drops an incendiary bomb, the explosion of which lights up the whole neighbourhood with a dull red glow. ”

“ He was momentarily expecting to hear the hum of the returning aeroplane when, with a suddenness that took him all aback, there was a tremendous roar, followed in a second or two by a terrific crash just beyond the Pathan compound. Turning in consternation to discover the cause of it, he saw a great mass of the cliff falling amid a cloud of dust and smoke upon the wooden pathway, and plunging into the river beneath. Such destruction could only be the effect of a shell. Beyond doubt one at least of the field guns had been brought into position behind the enemy's breastwork at the bend. ”

“ Observers on the ground heard the plane pass ever the field headed east and, from the sound, the engine was functioning normally. The wreckage was found at a point about four and one-half miles east of the airport and indicated that the pilot had turned back, probably to effect a landing. The plane had flown into a road embankment with the engine full on and the force of impact had practically disintegrated the plane. ”

“ Furthermore, the breakup sequence and the nature of the mass of fractures are entirely consistent with this as the initial occurrence.
Following separation of the right and left stabilizers the aircraft pitched down violently so that all four nacelles broke upward from combined inertia and gyroscopic loads. Immediately thereafter both wings were subjected to extreme downloads under which the right separated and the structural integrity of the left wing was destroyed. With the nacelles, right wing, and stabilizers gone, drag induced by the left wing yawed the fuselage violently to the left. ”

“ Then as he came through a cloud and was hidden [36] from the view of our planes, he suddenly righted and shot off toward the German lines.
The next day the same thrilling scene was staged a little to the south of us. But this time there was no disappointment. The rapid "pu-pu-pu-pu-pu" of the machine gun told us that our pilot's gun was working perfectly, and a burst of flame from the enemy plane told also how true was his aim.
There can be no more thrilling moments in life than when you are watching bodies out of control hurtling through space and are breathlessly anticipating the crash. ”

“ The loudspeakers were blaring with the announcement of the next stunt flight, the crash of the two planes in mid-air. Tim heard the words vaguely.
“The greatest air thriller ever performed,” the announcer was informing the crowd. “Two costly airplanes, speeding at more than 100 miles an hour, will positively crash head-on at an altitude of 2,000 feet. It’s daring, death-defying, breath-taking in its thrills. You’ll be glued to your seats when you see these ships hurl towards each other piloted by Ace McDowell and Tommy Larkin, two of the foremost flyers in the nation. ”

“ In at least one of these cases the speed of the airplane at which failure occurred was in excess of normal. In each instance the pilot was able to control the airplane sufficiently to effect a safe landing. From these experiences and from analysis it appears that such failure of the structure in this type aircraft may result either from air loads occasioned in encouraging gusts of extraordinary intensity, or from violent use of the controls. In one of these three instances, the stabilizer also sustained slight damage, insufficient however to render the surfaces inoperative. ”

“ Forces created by the speed of the plane on its contact with the water in the excessive nose-down attitude caused failure of the hull bottom and its structure, resulting in rapid submersion of the aircraft. ”

“ PAGE AIRWAYS, INC. — WASHINGTON — APRIL 27, 1945 [1]
Summary
Power interruption during a take-off climb induced a forced landing resulting in death to six passengers and injury to five others and to the crew of two at the National Airport, Washington, D. C., at approximately 1240 EWT on April 27, 1945. The aircraft was completely destroyed by impact and resultant fire. ”

“ The pilot headed south in an effort to land outside of the tower but was unsuccessful. The airplane came to rest at a 45° angle with the nose in some trees and the tail on the ground. The right engine was torn free of the airplane by the force of impact. ”

“ Owing to severity of impact it was not possible to learn if there had been a malfunction of any component prior to impact, although all major components were accounted for at the crash site which was at an elevation of 1,800 feet above sea level. ”

“ This had been built especially for the movements of troops.
So far they had made no use of the aeroplane which had been seen by Carruthers, and we did not wish them to know of ours, until necessary. Then an accident took place which might have upset our plans considerably: my two trained aeronauts were standing together talking, when a shell burst near them; killing one, wounding the other, and completely smashing one of the aircraft. ”

“ The A-26 had for a distance of several miles been in an attitude so that its pilot could not see other aircraft to his right, i.e., "give way" side. On the basis of the evidence available at this time the Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the failure of each pilot to see the other aircraft in time to avoid collision. Contributing factors were the DC3 pilot's deviation from the airway in the proximity of an active USAAF base and his lack of vigilance, and the Army pilot's continuing a maneuver which restricted his vision in an area not set aside for such maneuvers. ”

“ A hazard as great as being shot down was a crash landing or bail-out at sea, where the water was cold enough to kill a man in 20 minutes. Survival clothing and equipment was so bulky that pilots could barely get into their cockpits. ”

“ The uniform distribution of the wreckage ahead of the point of impact indicated that no rotation around the longitudinal or vertical axis of the airplane was occurring at the time of impact, which would in itself eliminate the possibility that the airplane was actually in a spin when it struck, although it would still leave the chance that the airplane might have been in a spin, which the pilot had checked, and that it had struck the ground before it had been possible for him to complete the flattening out of the flight path from the subsequent dive before striking the ground. ”